Promises, Revised
by Akodo Tim
Summary: Loosely based on the first 'Girlfriend of Steel' game. Mana's dream of becoming a pilot becomes a nightmare. C&C appreciated.
1. Chapter One: First Impressions

_Disclaimer:_ Neon Genesis Evangelion/Shin Seiki Evangelion, Girlfriend of Steel, and all related concepts and characters are the property of Gainax, Project EVA, Movic, AD Vision, Manga Entertainment, and other copyright owners and are used without permission.

**Promises**

Chapter One

The sun slowly rose over the mountains that surrounded Tokyo-3 to herald the start of another day. The glowing rays stretched over the awakening city and reflected off of the towering skyscrapers of the downtown core. They eventually shone down on a suburb that had been spared from the ravages of the Angels and fell upon three teenagers walking casually down the street.

The first, a lithe, graceful girl, sported a head of close-cropped powder blue hair and wore a teal pinafore dress over a simple white blouse. If one looked closely enough, one might have noticed a faint, almost imperceptible smile on her face and a tiny glint in her scarlet eyes as she sauntered down the street

The girl's female companion wore an outfit identical to hers, except that she had a pair of black shoes on her feet instead of the white ones the first girl wore. Her fiery copper hair flowed down past her shoulders while a pair of shining red metal clips on her head kept it in place; her neatly trimmed bangs framed a pretty face that wore an expression of smug confidence.

The third member of the trio was a brown-haired boy of roughly the same age as the two girls. He wore a pair of slacks with a plain white collared shirt. Much to the amusement of his red-haired colleague, he juggled a backpack, two book bags, and a pair of lunch bags as he walked. "This is the last time I walk to school with you, Asuka!" he puffed as he struggled to keep up with them. "You know I'm not good at rock-paper-scissors!"

The redhead stopped and turned to face the boy with an irritated scowl on her face. "Oh, quit your whining and be a man, Shinji!" she replied. She placed her hands on her hips. "We agreed the loser would carry everyone's bags to the next telephone pole. Besides," she added as her mouth twisted into a wicked grin, "it's not my fault that you suck at it." She ignored Shinji's muttered protest and lazily raised her arms above her head in a catlike stretch. "Hikari told me last night that a new transfer student's supposed to be arriving today. Heard anything about it?"

Shinji's quizzical expression told the redhead all she needed to know. "I guess not." She sighed and let her arms drop back down to her sides. "Why on earth would anyone want to move here, anyway?" she wondered out loud.

"Maybe his parents got transferred to headquarters or something." Shinji shrugged. "It's not our business anyway."

A wry smile crossed Asuka's face. "At any rate, whoever it is can't possibly be as boring as you are."

Shinji opened his mouth to reply to Asuka's taunt, but got distracted as one of the bags chose that moment to try to escape from his grasp.

"If you do not hurry," called a soft, distant voice that somehow managed to carry itself over the rumble of nearby traffic, "we will be late."

Asuka turned her head and saw her blue-haired classmate waiting for them at the telephone pole half a block away. "Hey!" the redhead exclaimed. "How did you... wait up, Wondergirl!" Asuka snatched her bag from Shinji's hand and dashed down the sidewalk after her. "Hurry up, idiot!" she called back over her shoulder. "You don't want us to be late for class, do you?"

"Whatever you say," Shinji sighed as he trudged after her.

- - -

The classroom was anything but quiet by the time Shinji walked through the door. Except for Rei, who quietly sat down at her desk beside the window as usual, everyone was huddled together in small groups catching up on homework or, more importantly, gossip. The two boys who waved at him from near the back of the room were certainly no exception.

"Yo Shinji," the taller of the pair called as Shinji approached them. The athletic boy's lean, tanned face broke into an enthusiastic, yet puzzled grin. "Do you know what all the excitement's about this morning?"

Shinji shrugged as he walked over to them. "I don't know, Touji," he replied. "I think it's because there's a new student arriving today."

"What? A new transfer student?" Touji exclaimed.Shinji nodded. "That's what Asuka said, anyway."

"Oh man, this is great!" Touji removed his white baseball cap and ran his fingers through his messy, coarse hair. "I hope she's a babe!"

"Hey, Loverboy, what makes you think it's going to be a girl?" piped up a sandy-haired, freckled youth behind Touji. He calmly took his glasses off and wiped the lenses with his shirtsleeve as the lanky boy's mind ground to a screeching halt.

Touji's excitement visibly drained out of his face as, for the first time, he considered the possibility that their new classmate would be a boy. "Well..."

"Remember," the boy added as he slid his glasses back onto his face, "the last time we got a transfer student, we got _her_." He nodded slightly at Asuka, who was chatting with Hikari on the other side of the classroom.

"Aw, shaddap Kensuke!" fumed Touji. "I'm just being optimistic. Nothing wrong with that, is there?"

"I suppose-"

The conversation stopped as the familiar sound of chimes rang through the school. The students scrambled to their seats.

"Rise!"

Hikari's voice cut through the classroom. Her classmates stood up as their elderly teacher entered the room and made his way to his desk.

"Bow! Be seated!"

The class did as it was ordered.

The old man's face broke into a broad grin as the students took their seats. "Good morning, everyone," he announced. "Before we get started today, I'd like you to help me greet our new classmate. Please make her feel welcome." He turned to the open doorway. "Come in, Miss Kirishima."

At the teacher's words, a smiling girl walked into the classroom. Short, wispy chestnut brown hair surrounded her cute pixyish face; her steel-gray eyes gleamed in the classroom's fluorescent lights as she grinned at her new classmates. She picked up a piece of chalk, wrote her name on the blackboard, and turned back to the class. "My name is Mana Kirishima," she said in a sweet, chirpy voice. "I'm glad to meet you."

"Glad to meet you too!" shouted Touji from his seat near the back. Several students sniggered at his outburst while Hikari looked to the ceiling and clapped a hand to her forehead.

"Doesn't that idiot have any shame?" she muttered to herself through gritted teeth.

"Now, class, settle down." The teacher looked around the classroom, searching for a spot for his new student. "Miss Kirishima, why don't you sit..." he spied an empty desk near the middle of the room. "Next to Ikari over there."

The new student nodded to the teacher and walked down the aisle toward the empty desk. She glanced at the young man fidgeting in the seat beside her as she passed; blue eyes met gray for an instant before Shinji looked at the floor again.

"Hi, cutie." She giggled as Shinji stuttered and his face turned crimson at her remark. "You must be Ikari. Nice to meet you."

As Shinji tried in vain to stammer out a reply, Asuka let out an annoyed growl that was drowned out by the whoops and catcalls from the rest of her male classmates–all but one of them, that is.

Touji clutched his head with both hands as the teacher tried to restore order. "Damn it," he moaned to himself. "Why does Shinji get all the luck?"

- - -

The sounds of excited chatter wafted up from the schoolyard as Shinji leaned against the railing that surrounded the school's rooftop. He barely felt the warm metal against his arms as he cradled a half-empty milk carton in his hands and absently stared at the city's glittering skyline.

"Mind if I join you?"

Shinji jumped at the sound of the unexpected voice behind him. The milk carton slipped from his hands and tumbled through the air to land, forgotten, with a wet splat on the pavement below. He whirled around and found himself looking into a pair of smiling gray eyes. "Kirishima!" he gasped in surprise.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Ikari," Mana apologized. "I didn't mean to startle you."

Shinji smiled sheepishly. "Th-that's okay," he stammered. "I just didn't hear you behind me, that's all."

"I can tell."

Shinji's mouth opened and closed, but no sound emerged as he desperately tried to think of something to say."Well?" Mana prompted after a minute.

Shinji coughed nervously. "Well, what?"

Mana gestured toward the railing.

Shinji nodded hesitantly, then turned back to stare at the city skyline. A warm, gentle afternoon breeze washed over them as they leaned against the railing and gazed at the skyscrapers in the distance. "Wow, it's beautiful," Mana sighed. "Don't you think so, Ikari?"

"What, the city?"

"No, not that. The mountains."

Shinji blinked. "The mountains?" He looked at the forested peaks on the horizon. "I suppose."

Mana looked at Shinji curiously, then smiled. "Well, I guess you're too busy to enjoy the scenery, with you being an Evangelion pilot and everything."

Shinji turned his head and stared at her, shocked. "H-how do you know that, Kirishima?"

"Everyone here knows it. If that's supposed to be a secret, it's the worst-kept one in the whole school."

Shinji chuckled as he recalled the commotion he had caused on his first day of class. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Mana turned back to the mountains again. "You know, I'm jealous."

"Really? Why?"

"You get to go out there and protect Mankind from these horrible... things like some gallant knight, and I'm just a helpless bystander. I'm frustrated that I can't do anything at all. "

"You don't have to put it that way."

There was an awkward silence between the two teenagers for a minute until Mana's gaze drifted back to the schoolyard. "So tell me," she said with a grimace, "does Mister Watanabe always go on about Second Impact like that...?"

The two classmates chatted and watched the antics of the other students below until they were interrupted by a mocking voice from behind them.

"Well, look at you two just flirting away."

Both of them turned around.

"We're not flirting, Asuka." said Shinji. "We're just talking, that's all."

Asuka snorted. "Yeah, sure. That's just what you want me to think." She planted her hands on her hips and cocked her head accusingly at them. "You two seem pretty chummy for people who have just met. Are you two childhood friends or something?"

"N-no," replied Shinji, "we just happen to get along."

"Whatever. Must be nice to be popular for a change. Anyway, let's go," Asuka ordered. "We have to get going to headquarters."

Shinji blinked. "What, already?"

"Yes, already." The redhead sighed and rolled her eyes. "Just great," she muttered darkly. "Mankind's survival depends on someone who doesn't even know the time of day." She folded her arms in front of her chest and scornfully looked at her new classmate. "Kirishima, please excuse us. _We_ have important work to do."

Shinji's cheeks flushed slightly. "Asuka..." he asked as he glanced at Mana, "would you mind waiting for me outside?"

Asuka's smug expression disappeared. She blinked in confusion for a moment, then scowled at her roommate. "I'm _so_ sorry for interrupting you," she huffed.

The Second Child spun on her heel and marched to the stairwell leading back into the school. When she reached it she turned around, stuck her tongue out at the pair, and slammed the door behind her.

- - -

"Out of my way, you morons!"

The furious redhead shoved her way past Touji and Kensuke, nearly sending the freckled boy reeling into the wall. As the two of them watched, she stormed down the corridor and disappeared among the lockers by the school's entrance.

"Hmph. What's with Asuka the Grouch?" asked Kensuke as he picked his glasses up from the floor.

"Who knows?" Touji shrugged. "Maybe it's that time of–"

"I don't think so. She's been acting weird ever since this morning..." Kensuke's voice trailed off as something dawned on him. "Hey... you don't suppose...?"

The two friends looked at each other thoughtfully.

"Naaah," they said in unison.

- - -

A loud clack echoed through the briefing room as Ritsuko coldly walked up to a table and dejectedly threw her clipboard down onto it. "Well," she announced to the three pilots sitting in front of her in the briefing room, "I must say that this has been one of the most disappointing batches of test results I've ever seen."

"Were our synch ratios unsatisfactory, Doctor?" Rei asked.

Ritsuko snorted and shoved her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. "That's an understatement. I saw a slight improvement in your score, Rei, but Asuka's was down by seven points, and Shinji's score was down by thirteen." She glared at the purple-haired woman standing next to her. "Can you explain this?"

Misato blinked. "What are you looking at me for?"

"They're both in your care."

"That doesn't prove a thing."

"With the way you live, I'm surprised we haven't had to deal with anything more serious than low synch scores."

"Now see here-"

"If you ask me," interrupted Asuka, "it's all because of Shinji's lovesickness."

"Lovesickness!?" Misato and Ritsuko exclaimed together. They both stared at Shinji, who suddenly looked decidedly uncomfortable.

Ritsuko arched an eyebrow at the Third Child. "Okay, what's going on?"

Shinji stared at the floor and blushed furiously. "Uh, um, well, there's this new girl in class–"

"Who's been putting the moves on him ever since she arrived." The redhead finished his sentence, scowling. "It's disgusting! She has no shame at all!"

Misato smirked. "So why did your synch ratio drop too, Asuka?" she teased. "Don't tell me you're jealous of having Shinji stolen from you."

Asuka sputtered for a second before she shot to her feet and pointed her finger at Shinji's face. "My score's still better than his. What makes you think I'd be interested in a brat like him anyway?"

"Brat!?" Shinji protested. "I'm the same you age you are!"

"_Enough_!"

Shinji and Asuka both jumped as Ritsuko shouted and tiredly rubbed her temples. "Okay, there's nothing more for you guys to do here, so you might as well go home. I want better results out of all of you tomorrow, understood?"

The Children sullenly filed out of the room without another word and headed for the showers.

Ritsuko picked her clipboard up from the table. "I'm getting too old to be babysitting those kids," she muttered to herself as she gathered her papers. She looked up and noticed Misato grinning at her. "What are you looking at?" she demanded.

"Oh, nothing. Welcome to my world."

- - -

Spring had arrived in Tokyo-3.

Despite the endless summer brought about by Second Impact over a decade ago, the flowering cherry trees throughout the city still greeted the changing of the seasons. Every year a pink and white blizzard heralded the arrival of spring more vividly than the simple turning of a calendar page.As Mana walked along the street on her way home from school, the petals fluttering down from the trees weren't the only falling objects that were on her mind.

"So you had to catch the Angel with your bare hands?" she asked her companion in amazement.

"Well, not really," said Shinji. "I mean, it was the Eva that caught it."

Mana sighed and gave Shinji an amused glance. "You know what I mean."

Shinji smiled slightly. "Yeah, I know. But that's pretty well what happened. I caught it, Ayanami lowered its defences, and Asuka destroyed it."

"Wow, that's so cool! You guys make a great team!"

Shinji's grin widened. "You... you really think so?"

"Yes, I do." Mana looked longingly at some clouds hovering near the horizon. "I wish I could pilot an Evangelion."

The smile disappeared from Shinji's face. "Believe me, you don't," he said flatly.

"Why not? It would be exciting to actually be protecting Mankind instead of helplessly sitting around doing nothing."

"You're beginning to sound like Kensuke."

Mana chuckled. "Maybe I should go and buy a video camera one of these days."

"Please don't," Shinji groaned. "One person like him hanging around me is bad enough."

"He's not that bad, is he?" Mana asked, laughing.

"You should have seen him when we first met Asuka. I think he kept filming when Touji dropped his­"

"Shinji!" called a slightly muffled voice from beside him.

The Third Child turned his head in the direction of the voice and smiled in recognition as the window of a blue sports car parked on the side of the street next to him rolled down.

"Misato! What are you doing here?"

Shinji's guardian grinned. "Just doing a little shopping. Hey, is this your friend?"

"Yes." Mana bowed respectfully to the older woman. "I'm Mana Kirishima."

"Misato Katsuragi. Nice to meetcha." She removed her sunglasses and looked at Mana with a twinkle in her eyes. "You're Shinji's girlfriend, aren't you?"

"Misato!" Shinji cried, shocked.

Misato winked at the young woman. "I'm sure you'll lo-o-ve him. I hear he's a fabulous kisser..."

"_Misato!!_"

Misato flashed Shinji a smile. "Oh, you know I'm just teasing. Lighten up, will you?" She giggled and turned back to Mana. "You know, you should come over sometime."

Mana looked at Shinji, confused. "You mean...?"

Shinji nodded. "I live with Misato and Asuka."

"Oh_, really..._" Mana cocked an eyebrow at her classmate.

Shinji's face turned scarlet. "It's not like that!"

Misato giggled again. "You're a fast learner, aren't you?"

Mana smiled mischievously. "You're right, this _is_ fun."

The tinkling of a bell saved Shinji from any further damage to what was left of his dignity as a man in slightly rumpled clothes strolled out of a nearby store, his arms overflowing with grocery bags filled with snack food.

"Why did you get this much, Kaji?" Misato asked, puzzled.

The unkempt man grinned. "We've got a lot of work to do tonight. I figured this way we could feed everyone in the command center."

"Idiot. What'll happen if chips get in the computers?"

Kaji shrugged as he put the bags in the back seat. "Potato chips, memory chips, what's the difference?" He turned and saw the two teenagers standing next to the car. "Hi, Shinji," he called jovially. "How's our little Casanova?"

Shinji groaned. "Not you too, Kaji..."

"That's a cute friend you have there." He turned to Mana and gave her a charming smile. "You must be..."

"Someone who shouldn't be talking with a man like you!" Misato cut in sharply. "Chasing after eighth graders! How low can you get, Kaji? Let's go!"

"Hey, what's wrong with a simple greeting?" Kaji protested as he climbed into the passenger seat. "I didn't even get her name!"

Misato started the car, waved at Shinji and Mana, and pulled out of the parking stall to the sound of screeching tires. The two teenagers watched them speed away.

"Misato seems like a very interesting person," Mana said thoughtfully.

Shinji nodded his head. "You don't know the half of it."

- - -

The hallways within the bowels of NERV headquarters were empty, save for a handful of technicians scurrying about on various errands. Apart from the hum of the air conditioners and the occasional page from the PA speakers, all was relatively quiet - until the calm was shattered by three words that suddenly echoed throughout the corridors as three women walked through the passages on their way to Central Dogma.

"They're doing _what!?_" Misato nearly shouted in disbelief.

"They're going to transfer Unit 03 to Japan from First Branch," Ritsuko replied clinically.

Misato snorted. "It figures. The Americans were so eager to land the contract to build Evas 03 and 04, and now they want to hand over the responsibility at the first hint of trouble."

"Still," said Maya, "After what happened to Unit 04, I don't blame them for wanting to. If it happens again if they try installing a S2 engine at First Branch..." her voice trailed off as she shuddered at the thought.

Ritsuko nodded in agreement as she continued Maya's line of reasoning. "Then we can kiss over a million people in the New Boston area goodbye."

"So that leaves Matsushiro as the only facility we have where we can perform a full S2 activation test without putting civilians at risk," mused Misato as she frowned and folded her arms in front of her. "You know, I've got a bad feeling about this."

"Commander Ikari's orders," replied Ritsuko. "We don't have a choice in the matter."

Misato stared at the ceiling. "I know," she sighed. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it."

- - -

The library wasn't exactly the busiest room in the school at lunchtime. Unless the specter of an upcoming assignment or exam was looming on the horizon, most students easily found some reason to avoid spending their time among the seemingly endless rows of books inside–which was why Shinji was surprised to see someone he knew doing exactly that as he walked past the open doorway.

"Hi, Kirishima. What are you doing wasting your lunch break in here?" Shinji asked the brunette as he walked up to the table she was leaning over.

"Oh, hi Ikari." Mana looked up from a map she had spread out in front of her. "I'm just checking out things to do around here. I figured I might as well explore a little now that I'm settled in." She frowned and pointed to a large blue outline on the edge of the map. "Have you ever been here?"

"Lake Ashi? Just once, with Touji and Kensuke a while ago."

"What's it like there?"

"It's really nice and scenic. There's a hot spring there, a village with those little souvenir shops and a few other things."

"It sounds like a nice place." Mana thoughtfully stared at the map. "It's supposed to be sunny on Sunday, but..." her voice trailed off sadly.

"But what?"

"I was thinking of going there, but it's no fun going to a place like that by yourself."

"Well, I wouldn't mind going there again, and I'm not doing anything Sunday..."

Mana fixed Shinji with a level gaze. "Ikari, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were asking me out. "

Shinji gulped and looked at his feet as he suddenly realized what his invitation sounded like. "Well..."

"You mean you wouldn't want to ask me out?"

"No!" he said hastily. "That's not it at all!"

"So..." Mana asked softly, "it's a date, then?"

Shinji shifted his feet and stuttered.

The girl's gray eyes twinkled with delight. "I'd love to go!"

"I-I mean, um, I'd understand if you don't, so..." Shinji paused for a second and blinked, then looked up at the brunette's smiling face. "_What_?"

"You should listen a little more. I said yes."

Shinji's mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out for a few seconds. "R-really?" he asked when he finally found his voice again.

She nodded, blushing.

"That's great! I'll check the bus schedules after school."

Mana excitedly tore a page from her notebook, scribbled something on it, and handed it to Shinji. "Here's my number. Call me tonight when you figure everything out, okay?"

"Sure."

"Promise? I'll be waiting."

"I promise-"

Just then, the chimes echoed through the school to signal the start of afternoon classes. Shinji and Mana looked at each other.

"Oh, crap!" they exclaimed together.

The pair scooped up their books and ran back to the classroom.

- - -

"Okay, see you tomorrow morning, Kirishima. Bye."

Shinji pressed a button on the cordless phone handset and sighed. He stood there, grinning, half-expecting the dream to end at any moment and bring him crashing back to earth. Until then, he felt that nothing could dispel the magic of the moment. Absolutely–

"Well, looks like you're becoming quite a playboy."

Shinji jumped in surprise and turned around as Asuka stepped out of her room with a wry smile on her face. She moved a lock of hair behind her ear and pushed her way past Shinji on her way to the kitchen.

"I can just see tomorrow's headlines now," she drawled mockingly. "'Thousands of Shinji Ikari fans die of heartbreak. World Health Organization called in to investigate epidemic. Film at eleven.'"

"That's not funny."

Asuka scoffed. "Well, it's true. You and Kirishima are practically an item now."

Shinji shook his head as his roommate reached into a cupboard to grab a glass. "How can we? We haven't even been on a date yet."

Asuka smiled and turned on the tap. "Date or no date, you two will be the talk of the school on Monday."

"And I'm sure a certain pilot I know will have something to do with it, right?"

Asuka's eyebrows rose in mock surprise. "Oh by the way, Misato said an emergency's come up at Headquarters so she can't make dinner tonight. Since I ordered something last night..."

"Don't worry, I'll make something." Shinji said with a hint of relief in his voice.

The redhead smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that. Now hurry up. I'm starving."

Fifteen minutes later, Shinji handed Asuka a fork and a steaming plate of fried rice. "It's instant," he apologized. "I hope that's okay."

"It'll do," she replied as she reached for the bottle of soy sauce in the middle of the table. "Thanks."

The two pilots quietly ate for a while. When Shinji finally looked back up from his food, he saw that Asuka had barely touched her dinner and was idly pushing a stray pea around on her plate with her fork instead.

"What's the matter? I thought you said you were hungry."

"I'm just a little preoccupied right now."

"Oh, really? About what?"

The redhead reached for her glass and took a sip of water. "You and Kirishima."

Shinji's eyes widened for an instant before narrowing slightly. "And what do you mean by that?"

"I don't think Kirishima's your type. I mean, look at her. She's smart, she's attractive, and she's got charm. You're... well, you're _you_."

"Thanks," Shinji replied dryly. "So... just who do you think is my type, then?"

Asuka propped up her head with her left hand and went back to pushing the unfortunate pea around. "I can think of someone in particular."

"Really?" Shinji asked, bemused. "Who? Hikari?"

"Nope."

"Rei?"

Asuka gave an amused snort.

"Don't tell me it's Misato."

The redhead shook her head. "As much as I can see the irony, somehow I can't imagine our guardian being a closet pedophile."

Shinji chuckled. "Well, who then?"

Asuka stared innocently at the ceiling.

"W-wait a second..." he stammered. "Not...?"

"Maybe."

Shinji blushed furiously as he stared in astonishment at the girl sitting across from him.

Asuka smirked as she got up and stacked her dishes next to the sink. "I didn't know you could turn that shade of red."

Shinji gaped at her for a few more seconds before he could finally talk again. "You... you weren't serious, were you?" he gasped.

"You idiot," Asuka chided, "of course not." She walked out into the hallway before she added, "I was thinking of Kensuke or Touji." She disappeared around the corner before her roommate could think of a comeback.

"Oh, by the way," she called over her shoulder. "Misato's not going to be home for a while. If you think you need kissing practice for Sunday..."

Asuka smiled to herself and walked into her room as she heard the sudden loud clatter from the kitchen.

CONTINUED...

- - -

Author's Note: 04-15-2004

This fic started out so innocently... One day Rakna posted on a message board and wondered why there were so few serious fics out there with Mana in them. I had just finished Girlfriend of Steel at the time and had seen several pieces of art with her in it, put a few pieces together, and... well, I wrote one. I've since rewritten it to fix some pacing issues and to expand on a few scenes, and this is the end result. I hope you enjoy it.

Anyway... special thanks go out to Rob, who preread the original first chapter, and to 'notime' for his prereading help and for putting up with a very slow writer. Hopefully the updates will come quicker now that my muse is back from stress leave.  ;)


	2. Chapter Two

_Disclaimer:_ Neon Genesis Evangelion/Shin Seiki Evangelion, Girlfriend of Steel, and all related concepts and characters are the property of Gainax, Project EVA, Movic, AD Vision, Manga Entertainment, and other copyright owners and are used without permission.

**Promises**

Chapter Two

Muted instrumental music filled the air as Shinji stretched in a vain attempt to get the kinks out of his back before he continued walking toward the lounge. After spending most of the afternoon in a simulation plug, he just couldn't wait to get something to wash the salty, metallic taste of LCL out of his mouth.

To his surprise, he found Misato waiting for him by the drink machines when he stepped through the door. She grinned enthusiastically at him he walked up, then waved his hand away as he was about to put a coin into one of the machines.

"Here, this one's on me," she said cheerily before she slid a few coins into the slot. She held up two cans of tea and handed one to Shinji. "Hey, what's this I hear about you going on a date tomorrow?" she asked as she opened her drink.

"Huh?" Shinji stopped mid-sip. "How did you know?"

Misato smiled mysteriously. "A little bird told me."

The pilot arched an eyebrow as he had an idea just who that bird was, but kept sipping his drink. "It's nothing, really. Mana and I are just going to spend the day at Lake Ashi."

"You're taking her to the hot springs? Aw, that's sweet. Congrats, Romeo." Misato smiled and affectionately punched Shinji in the shoulder. "Ah, young love. My little Shinji's growing up so fast." She sighed wistfully with an exaggerated dreamy look in her eyes.

"Misato..."

"You know, I expect to hear all the steamy details when you get home..."

Shinji defiantly closed his eyes and folded his arms in front of him. "Stop teasing me."

"Oh, all right." She pouted for a moment but the mischievous twinkle never left her brown eyes. "But I'm still going to have to have _that_ talk with you tonight..."

"Hey, Katsuragi." A familiar voice came out of nowhere and interrupted Misato's taunting. "Take it easy on the poor kid, will you?"

Misato's impish smile disappeared as she looked round to see Kaji grinning at her from the doorway. She nodded in the unkempt man's direction as he casually strolled toward them. "Sorry for butting in like this," he said, "but I was just seeing if we're still having dinner tonight. That is, if you're done giving bedroom tips to Shinji."

Misato almost dropped her can as her face nearly matched the color of her jacket. "W-what--?"

"Just because we did that sort of thing on our first date," Kaji deadpanned, "doesn't mean that Shinji needs _that_ sort of advice."

Misato angrily pointed at Kaji. "We did NOT...!" She stopped mid-sentence, her mouth hanging open, as she realized that Shinji was still standing next to her, watching them. After a few awkward seconds, she closed her mouth with a snap and let her hand fall to her side. "If you'll excuse me," the indigo-haired woman said stiffly before turning on her heel, "I'm late for a meeting with Sub-Commander Fuyutsuki." She pitched her empty can at a waiting garbage bin; it clanged off the wall a good foot away from its target and fell to the floor with a loud, hollow rattle as she stormed out of the lounge.

Kaji leaned against one of the machines and watched her leave. "Well, so much for dinner," he sighed before he turned to grin crookedly at Shinji. "She can dish it out, but she sure can't take it, huh?"

"I guess not," Shinji replied with a smile before he drank the last of his tea. "So..." the young pilot said as he turned and looked quizzically at Kaji, "how did _you_ find out about the date?"

Kaji shrugged. "Remember where I work." There was a faint metallic clink as he put a few coins into a coffee machine. "So, you nervous?"

"A bit." The young pilot walked over to the now slightly dented can that Misato had thrown on her way out and bent down to pick it up. "Uh... Kaji?" he asked. "Um... can I... I mean, do you mind if...?"

Kaji chuckled. "You want some advice, huh?"

Shinji tossed both cans into the trash. "How did you know?"

"It's written all over your face." The roguish man grinned before he took his steaming cup out of the dispenser and took a careful sip.

"I guess I'm more nervous than I thought," the pilot said with a nervous sigh.

"Well, I'll see what I can do for a fellow bachelor," Kaji said with his usual charming grin. "What's the problem?"

Shinji shrugged helplessly "Well... women."

Kaji raised his eyebrows and whistled softly. "Now there's something countless wise men have pondered over the ages."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean don't bother trying to figure them out."

The youth's shoulders slumped a little. "That's not very encouraging, Kaji," he said glumly.

"Hey, just because men can't understand women doesn't mean that I can't help." Kaji sat down at a table and motioned for Shinji to join him. "Now," he continued as the boy pulled up a chair, "there's no magic formula that will work every time because every woman is different. Part of the fun is trying to figure out what works for the one you're going out with."

"So is there anything I should do tomorrow, then?"

Kaji shrugged. "It depends. Do you want to keep seeing her?"

"Well..." Shinji's cheeks flushed a little as looked sheepishly down at the floor. "I haven't really thought about that, but... sure."

A mysterious grin spread slowly across Kaji's face. "Then here's what you do..."

Kaji peered around the room conspiringly before leaning over the table. Shinji listened in eager anticipation as the older man met the boy's gaze with a serious one of his own.

"Just be yourself."

Shinji blinked. "Be myself?" he repeated.

Kaji nodded solemnly. "Sounds simple, doesn't it? It's surprising how many guys forget that."

"That's it?" Shinji asked incredulously. "That's the big secret?"

Kaji leaned back in his chair and chuckled. "No, that's not all of it, but like I said, everyone's different. It _is_ the most important thing if you really like her, though. If she doesn't like who you really are, then there's no point."

"But what if she doesn't?"

"Then it wasn't meant to be." Kaji shrugged and took another sip of his coffee. "You learn from your mistakes and move on." He looked up at a clock mounted on the wall. "Hey, speaking of moving, shouldn't you be getting back? I'll bet Ritsuko's probably looking for you by now."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," He reluctantly stood up and smiled gratefully at Kaji. "Thanks."

"Anytime." Kaji flashed him a grin and winked. "Let's both do our best."

The smile on the young pilot's face grew, buoyed by confidence, as he turned and walked back out into the corridor.

- - -

Shinji nervously paced inside the apartment, pausing briefly only to place a neatly folded towel into a backpack. What little light that managed to sneak in through the drapes drawn across the windows bathed everything in a peaceful half-light that seemed to silence everything except for the deep, rumbling snores coming from Misato's room. He took one last look around before, satisfied, he picked up his pack and slung it over his shoulder.

Everything was ready.

Unfortunately, that fact did little to calm the fluttering he felt in the pit of his stomach.

The rattle of an empty beer can rolling on the kitchen floor shattered the early morning calm. Startled, Shinji spun around with an apology on his lips, only to see a pair of beady, black eyes blinking back at him. He relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh, hi Pen-Pen," he whispered.

Misato's warm-water penguin watched him intently from the entrance to the kitchen. "Wark?" he squawked as he cocked his head inquisitively.

The Third Child blinked, puzzled. "But... I just fed you," he said, pointing at a plate of fish and an open can of beer next to the table.

"Wark!"

"Oh, I get it," Shinji replied as realization dawned on him. "Sorry, but you can't come this time."

"Waaaaark!" Pen-Pen cried as he flapped his flippers.

"Shh!" Shinji frantically waved his hands as he tried to shush his roommate. "Do you want to wake everyone up?"

The thought of possibly having to spend the rest of the morning with at least one cranky, sleep-deprived roommate was apparently enough to calm the penguin down. He stared at Shinji with a hopeful look in his eyes.

Shinji apologetically shook his head. "I'll take you next time," he said as he turned around and reached for the door. "Promise."

Pen-Pen quietly watched as Shinji slipped out of the apartment and closed the door behind him. Silence settled back over the apartment again as he gazed after the boy for a little while longer before he preened his ruffled feathers and slowly waddled back to the kitchen with a disappointed sigh.

- - -

"Wow... and I thought the view from the school roof was nice..."

Mana gazed out over the lake as she and Shinji strolled down the gravel path that ran along the shore. She held a wide-brimmed sunhat to her head as her white cotton dress billowed and flapped in the brisk wind that blew in from the water. A handful of ducks bobbed on the lake's rippled surface while the crimson arch of a shrine entrance stood out in sharp contrast to the greenery of the forest on the far shore.

"It's so beautiful," the gray-eyed girl sighed. "I wish my life was as peaceful as this."

Shinji chuckled ruefully. "You're not the only one."

Mana nodded. "Still, it's nice to get away from everything for a little while at least." She looked sidelong at her companion. "I'm so glad we decided to come here, Ikari," she said with a faint smile on her lips.

"You're... um... my pleasure," Shinji replied hesitantly.

"Hey, relax." The brunette smiled gently. "We're supposed to be having fun here. Don't tell me a fearless defender of humanity is afraid of someone like me."

"No!" Shinji said hastily. "It's not that at all."

"Good. I should hope not."

The gravel crunched softly under their feet as they made their way along the path. After several more minutes of walking in the sunshine, Mana looked at the pilot next to her for a long moment. "Ikari..." she asked hesitantly, "can I ask you something?"

"Sure, I guess."

The brunette fidgeted slightly as she walked. "Well, we've known each other for a little while now."

"Right."

"And, well, going on a date is a way to get to know someone better, right?"

Shinji nodded.

Mana held her hands in front of her and wrung her fingers gently. "So... now that we're actually on a date..." She took a deep breath and held it for a second before blurting out, "I was thinking that maybe you could call me Mana if you really wanted to." The words came tumbling out in an anxious rush.

Shinji stopped in his tracks. He looked at her for a second and opened his mouth as if to say something, then closed it and looked back out over the water. "I... I don't know," he replied nervously. "I guess I'm not comfortable with it."

"I see." A thoughtful look crossed Mana's face. "Well, if it makes you feel better we could--_oh_!" she exclaimed as another gust of wind blew her hat off her head. She grabbed at the wayward garment, but the breeze carried it just out of her reach and sent it tumbling through the air and into a grassy clearing on the other side of the path. Without a second thought, both of them chased after it as it skittered and tumbled over the grass. Shinji lunged after it before it cartwheeled into some bushes...

...only to get bowled over as Mana tried to do the same thing.

The teens landed on the grass in a tangle. Shinji found himself lying on his back when the world finally stopped spinning; when he opened his eyes again he saw Mana kneeling over him, staring back with a shy smile. He nervously coughed, looked away, and said the first thing that came to mind.

"Here's your hat," he announced as he produced Mana's lace-trimmed sunhat and held it up to her.

The brunette accepted it graciously with a twinkle in her gray eyes. "That's why I like you, Ikari," she said, "you're such a gentleman." She stood and firmly placed it back on her head. "Thank you."

Shinji lay unmoving on the grass as his thoughts suddenly ground to a halt. His mind struggled to comprehend what the pretty, chestnut-haired girl had just admitted.

_She... she likes me?_

His mouth worked soundlessly before he finally looked back up at her and returned her smile with a timid one of his own. "You're welcome, Kiri... Mana."

Mana's musical laughter filled the air as Shinji picked himself up from the ground. "There you go, Shinji. That's the spirit."

- - -

Floodlights shone up from the floor of the tomblike chamber and cast sinister shadows through the stark, cheerless room within the depths of Terminal Dogma. The eerie glow illuminated two figures standing in front of the brain-like mass of conduits and blinking circuitry that loomed overhead out of the darkness

"I've just received word from First Branch," rumbled a flat baritone voice clearly audible over the hum of machinery echoing through the room. "Unit 03 is on its way and will arrive tomorrow morning." Gendo Ikari turned to the woman next to him. "I'm leaving you in charge of the delivery and modifications, Doctor."

"Yes, sir," replied Ritsuko. "According to the progress reports, the testing facilities at Matsushiro will be ready on schedule."

Gendo nodded with a satisfied grunt before he looked at a slender naked body that hung motionless within the clear cylinder hanging down from above. "And the test pilot will be...?"

Ritsuko flipped through the papers on her clipboard and shook her head. "I don't recommend using the dummy plug under the circumstances. Therefore, one of our prospective candidates..."

"...will be chosen as the Fourth Child?" Gendo asked, finishing Ritsuko's sentence for her. He turned his head slightly at the scientist beside him; the spotlights reflected off the lenses of his glasses almost menacingly as he regarded her.

Ritsuko nodded.

"Excellent," Gendo replied curtly. "I will leave things in your hands, then."

"Yes, sir."

NERV's commander let his gaze travel up to the peaceful face of the figure floating above him in the cylinder. "Rei," he called.

The young woman's eyes, tinted orange by the golden liquid surrounding her, opened slowly at the sound of Gendo's voice. "Yes?"

"That's all for now. Let's eat..."

- - -

"How's your lunch?" Mana asked the blue-eyed boy sitting across the picnic table from her as they sat in the shade of a pine tree.

Shinji looked up from his food and hastily swallowed. "It's great," he said approvingly. "You're a terrific cook."

Mana beamed back at him. "Thanks, Shinji. That means a lot coming from someone who cooks as well as you do."

Shinji looked back down at the weathered wooden tabletop. "I'm not that good," he mumbled bashfully.

"Sure you are. You're one of the best in our home economics class."

Her companion said nothing, but simply smiled back at her.

The wind blew through the treetops, raining a handful of pine needles down on the two teenagers below. Shinji grinned sheepishly at Mana and watched as she started to methodically pluck them out of her bento box. "Maybe I should have picked a better spot," he said with a nervous laugh.

"Oh, that's okay," she replied brightly. "Nothing like a little garnish to brighten up your meal."

Shinji chuckled softly. "I guess there are worse things that can land on your food, huh?"

Mana's face twisted into a look of disgust. "Let's not go there."

"Sorry."

They ate quietly in the shade for a few minutes until Mana spoke up again. "Hey Shinji, do you remember when we went to the rooftop at school on my first day?" she asked.

"Kind of," Shinji replied before biting into a rice ball.

"Do you still mean what you said? About us getting along, I mean?"

Shinji chewed thoughtfully and swallowed. "We're on a date. We're on a first-name basis. I can't see how we can be getting along any better unless..." his voice trailed off; he blushed as he realized where his sentence was leading.

"Great," she said softly. "I'm glad you see it that way."

Shinji curiously raised an eyebrow at his companion. "What's this all about?"

The brunette said nothing, but simply reached into her purse and fished out a camera.

Shinji's chopsticks fell from his fingers and dropped to the tabletop with a faint clatter.

Mana looked at Shinji quizzically, then glanced down at his half-eaten food. "Too spicy?" she asked with a slightly worried frown on her face.

Shinji hastily took a drink from a can of soda sitting on the table in front of him and shook his head. "N-no," he stammered, "it's not that."

"What's wrong, then?"

Shinji uncomfortably avoided her gaze. "I... I don't like having my picture taken."

"Oh," Mana said, glancing down as she nervously turned the camera over in her hands. "I'm sorry. I should have asked you first." She fidgeted a little in her seat. "It's just... well, I wanted something special from our first date, you know?"

"We could head to the souvenir shops," Shinji said hopefully.

Mana shook her head. "We could, but it's not the same. I wanted something more personal. How many first dates can you have with someone?"

Shinji frowned slightly as he thought for a moment. "Well, if it means that much to you..."

The young brunette regarded him, her brow creasing in concern. "Look, if you don't want to, I understand."

"It's okay."

"You sure?"

Shinji heaved a sigh and smiled weakly. "Sure."

Mana's face brightened instantly. She flagged down a middle-aged couple that happened to be walking by their table. After a few words and an agreeable nod, the teenager handed them the camera, scooted around the table, and placed her arm around Shinji's shoulders. After a smile, a bright flash, and a brief thank-you, it was all over.

"See?" she asked as she sat back down in her seat and put the camera away. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"No, I guess not..." Shinji stopped and looked at Mana when he noticed she was peering at him earnestly with an odd look on her face. "Uh," he said uneasily, "what's the matter?"

The corners of the young woman's mouth twitched. "I hate to tell you this, Shinji, but..."

"But what?"

"There was some rice on your face." She pointed to a spot on her cheek. "It's still there."

- - -

A wedge-shaped strategic bomber etched a milky white contrail across the sapphire sky as it lazily flew westward high over the Pacific. The gigantic aircraft was designed to deliver enough destructive force to level a city, but for this mission it carried something far more devastating.

"This is Neo Path four-zero-zero," the pilot announced as he adjusted his radio gain slightly. "Cumulonimbus clouds confirmed." He glanced at his instruments. "Barometer indicates no hazard. We're on course and expect to arrive on schedule. Over."

There was a slight pause before the speaker in his flight helmet crackled to life. "This is Ecta six-four," the disembodied voice said. "We copy. Over and out."

The pilot let out a breath and flipped a few switches until the red autopilot indicator flashed on, then looked over at the young woman sitting next to him. "So how do you like flying this crate so far?" he asked as he wearily undid his oxygen mask and scratched his salt-and-pepper beard.

"It's okay, I guess." The co-pilot looked out through the cockpit glass as the air around the bomber began to grow hazy. She drummed her fingers on her lap. "Boring, though."

The pilot grunted. "Get used to it. Japan's still seven hours away." The outside world disappeared as the plane entered the cloudbank. "It isn't as glamorous as flying a Raptor, but--"

The co-pilot jumped in surprise and shielded her eyes as a burst of blinding cerulean light flashed across the cockpit windshield. "What the hell was that?" she gasped.

"Relax. It's just some electrical discharge," her companion said soothingly as he checked the instruments again. Satisfied, he relaxed in his chair. "Nothing to worry about."

"If you say so." The woman stifled a yawn. "Boy, I could really use some coffee right about now."

The pilot flashed her a grin and pulled a thermos out from behind his seat. "Now that you mention it..."

As the jet-black aircraft continued on its way, faint traces of crackling energy played over the surface of the precious cargo suspended underneath its fuselage for a few seconds. A crimson light flared in the massive object's eyes for an instant before all was quiet again.

- - -

"Aaah..."

Shinji closed his eyes as he sank up to his chin in the steaming water of the hot spring. _This is what Heaven must feel like_, he thought to himself. With a sigh, he let his thoughts drift with the tendrils of steam that rose from the surface of the water. The mist seemed to shut out the rest of the outside world and wrap him in a warm, moist blanket where the only things that mattered were the pleasant warmth of the water, the rocks beneath him, and the faint aroma of pine needles.

"Okay, Shinji, I'm coming in." Mana's voice came to him through the fog and brought him back to reality. He shifted his naked body so his back faced the dressing rooms.

"All right, I'm ready," he called.

"And no peeking! Promise?"

Shinji grinned as he squeezed his eyes tighter. "I promise."

A faint splash and a subtle change in the rhythm of the ripples lapping against Shinji's body heralded Mana's arrival. Her bare shoulders brushed against his back as she settled down on the smooth rocks underneath. He gulped as his mind wandered; briefly, he concentrated to avoid the effects of thermal expansion on a certain part of his body. The contented sigh that came from behind him didn't help matters in that department much.

"Ooh, this is nice," Mana purred.

Shinji sighed as he let the water perform its magic on his body. The warmth surrounded him and worked its way inside, relieving the tension in places where he didn't know he had any. Beads of sweat and condensation plastered his hair to his forehead before running down his face to join the water in the spring.

The two teenagers relaxed for some time, facing away from each other, until Mana broke the peaceful silence.

"Shinji?" she asked shyly.

"Yes?"

"My back's getting all itchy. Could you scrub it for me, please?"

She giggled as Shinji suddenly thrashed and sputtered.

- - -

Misato leaned against a well-used metal filing cabinet and held a tiny black figurine of a cat in her hands. The smells of coffee and stale cigarette smoke surrounded her as she idly caressed the smooth, cool porcelain. "You seem pretty serious today, Ritsu," she asked the blonde woman sitting at the desk. "What's up?"

"I'm going over the procedures for Unit 03's activation test," Ritsuko said, her voice barely audible over the rhythmic tapping of her keyboard and the chattering of the printer.

"Oh, I see. Are you going to use Rei's dummy plug system for the test?"

Ritsuko shook her head. "No. We'll be using the Fourth," she replied nonchalantly.

Misato blinked in surprise before her head snapped around to look at her old friend. "The Fourth Child's been found?"

"Just yesterday." The blonde stopped typing and picked up a smouldering, half-finished cigarette from the overflowing ashtray next to the keyboard and brought it to her lips.

Misato's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "I haven't received a report from the Marduk Institute yet."

Ritsuko took a long drag from her cigarette. "The official documents are arriving tomorrow." She exhaled slowly before she placed the lipstick-stained butt back into the ashtray and crushed it out.

The violet-haired woman's brow furrowed as she gave Ritsuko a sidelong glance. "Are you hiding something from me again?"

"No, nothing at all."

"Well, okay," Misato sighed as she set the figurine down. She grabbed her cup of coffee from the top of the cabinet, stood up, and walked behind Ritsuko's chair to watch the monitor from over the scientist's shoulder. "So, who is it?"

Ritsuko typed in a command on her keyboard. After a second, the computer beeped and flashed the Fourth Child's picture and profile on the screen.

"Christ!" Misato gasped and nearly dropped her mug. She tried to take a sip of her coffee in an attempt to steady her suddenly frayed nerves, and noticed that her hand was trembling. She watched the data scroll up Ritsuko's monitor but paid hardly any attention to it as one thought kept racing through her mind.

_What the hell am I going to tell Shinji_?

- - -

Mana's white sunhat rested on her lap as the two teenagers began the long bus ride back to the city. She quietly sat on the hard vinyl seat, playing the events of the day over in her mind while the bright orange rays of the setting sun poured into the bus through the rear window and tinted everything inside with a deep amber cast.

_An almost perfect ending to an almost perfect day_, she mused to herself as she gazed out the window.

Mana jumped a little as she felt something brush against her arm. She looked down to see Shinji's hand resting on the seat between them. Her gaze moved up to the boy's face; he sat there, simply staring out the window at the scenery as the forest slowly gave way to gently rolling fields. Puzzled, she looked back down uncertainly at the hand on the hard vinyl beside her.

Was he trying to hint at something?

There was only one way to find out. Hesitantly, the brunette reached down and gently placed her slender hand on top of his.

Shinji's hand jerked at her touch. For a long moment, Mana worried that he would move his hand away, that she had pushed things too far too soon. Uncertainty filled her mind as his hand trembled under hers.

A long, awkward minute passed, then two, until Mana's breath caught in her throat as Shinji's hand finally moved.

His hand slowly turned itself over to rest against hers, its palm facing upward, before their fingers twined together. Mana smiled to herself and glanced at the young man sitting next to her; she saw the same smile mirrored on his face as he gave her a sidelong glance before he closed his eyes. Her smile grew as she moved closer to the pilot and leaned against him with a small sigh.

_Now_ it was perfect.

- - -

"Bye, Shinji," Mana called as he climbed aboard another bus. "I had a great time. Call me!"

Shinji waved back at her from the window. "I will. See you at school."

Mana placed her hat back on her head as she watched the bus drive off into the traffic and disappear around a corner. A throng of commuters surged around her as she turned around and headed back into the train station, but she was so lost in her own dreamy thoughts that she paid them little mind. She smiled blissfully to herself as she made her way through the bustling crowd toward her own bus stop.

She didn't notice the burly man who had stepped into her path until she nearly ran into him.

"Are you Mana Kirishima?" he rumbled.

Startled, she looked up. As she did, another man appeared out of nowhere stepped behind her. Both men loomed over her with stony expressions on their faces.

"Y-yes..." she replied timidly. "Is there something wrong?"

The two men silently reached into their pockets and flipped open their wallets. Mana's eyes went wide when she saw their identification.

"If you could come with us, please?"

The brunette nodded nervously and removed her sunhat. "Yes, of course," she replied.

The two men led the trembling young woman to a nondescript black sedan parked on the street beside the station. One of them opened the rear door for her and waited for her to climb inside.

- - -

"I'm home!" called Shinji as he kicked off his sneakers and placed them by the front door of the apartment.

"Mmm-hmm." Asuka lay on the living room floor, splitting her attention between a magazine and a soap opera while Pen-Pen snoozed beside her next to a half-eaten bag of microwave popcorn.

Shinji shrugged off his roommate's distracted response and looked around the apartment. "Hey, where's Misato?"

"Still at work," the auburn-haired girl replied without looking up from her magazine. "She called a little while ago."

"She's working on a Sunday? That's odd." He picked up a manga from the floor and sat down at the little table in the living room. "What's for dinner?"

"Take-out."

Shinji shook his head slowly as he idly flipped through the pages. "You really should learn to cook one of these days, you know."

"Hmph," Asuka replied indignantly. "Just be thankful it's not Misato's--"

"It's not Misato's what?" Misato asked suspiciously as she poked her head around the front door.

"Nothing." Asuka kept watching the television as if nothing had happened.

Misato raised an eyebrow at the redhead for a moment before she saw Shinji sitting at the table. She smiled and nervously cleared her throat. "Ah, there you are. Good. I need to talk to you."

"If it's about dinner, Asuka already ordered take-out."

"No, it's something more important than that." Her smile disappeared as she turned her head to look at the teenager lounging on the floor. "Asuka, could you give us a moment please?"

"I'm comfortable! Why should I have to move--"

The redhead's objection was interrupted by the shrill warble of the phone's ringer.

"I'll get it." Shinji stood up and grabbed the cordless phone off its cradle before anyon could say anything. "Hello, Katsuragi residence," he announced.

"Shinji?" The youthful voice on the other end of the line was practically bubbling with excitement. His heart gave a little skip as he recognized the caller.

"Mana? Is that you?"

Misato's eyes widened.

"Oh, Shinji!" Mana said giddily. "I just got the most exciting news!"

"Really?"

"Guess what? Just after you left the station, some men picked me up and took me to NERV headquarters--"

"H-headquarters!?" Shinji interrupted as his brow wrinkled in confusion. "What were you doing there?"

"I was just getting to that! You won't believe this! I'm going to be an Eva pilot! Just like you!"

Shinji blanched. The phone began to tremble in his hand as he turned and stared at Misato with a mixture of shock, dread, and disbelief. His guardian simply bit her lip and solemnly nodded at his unspoken question.

"I start my training tomorrow!" the teen gushed on the other end of the line. "Oh, this is so cool! We can go out there and make the world safe together! I can finally make a difference! Isn't that wonderful news, Shinji? Aren't you happy for me?"

The handset slipped from Shinji's shaking hand and landed softly on the carpet. As the stunned boy stood there, trying to make sense of everything, he barely heard Mana's tinny voice through the earpiece as it lay on the floor by his feet.

"Hello? Shinji? Are you there?"

"Hello?"

"Hello...?"

- - -

CONTINUED...

- - -

Authors' Note: 5-22-2004

Boy, you could see that plot twist coming a mile away, couldn't you? :P

Well, those of you who have read the original story probably know what changes I've made this time around. In addition to making a few minor adjustments to the pieces that were already written, I expanded on Shinji and Mana's date and tried to make it the main focus of this chapter instead of having it almost as a side note.

Once again, thanks go out to Rob for his help on the original first draft, and to 'notime' for prereading the "new, improved" chapter.


	3. Chapter Three: Don't Hate Me Because I L...

_Disclaimer:_ Neon Genesis Evangelion/Shin Seiki Evangelion, Girlfriend of Steel, and all related concepts and characters are the property of Gainax, Project EVA, Movic, AD Vision, Manga Entertainment, and other copyright owners and are used without permission.

**Promises**

Chapter Three: Don't Hate Me Because I Love You

- - - - -

Shinji gritted his teeth and bit back a scream as he grasped the handles of the entry plug's emergency hatch and pulled. The superheated metal blistered his hands through the material of his plug suit; he ignored the pain lancing up his arms and kept straining against the levers until they finally gave way and the seals unlocked themselves with a faint hiss. He flung open the half-melted hatch with a surge of strength fuelled by desperation.

A blast of steam seared his lungs as it billowed out to greet him. He flinched and turned his head, raising his arm in front of him in a futile attempt to ward off the heat. His gaze briefly fell upon the twisted remains of the girl's Evangelion and the heat shield it had carried, grisly reminders of the devastating caress of the Angel's particle beam. Shinji gulped and, steeling himself, looked back into the open hatchway.

He could barely make out the pilot's form, slumped motionless over her controls, in the ruddy glow of the emergency lights. He called her name and stepped inside the plug, ignoring the burning pain in his legs as he waded through the scalding shin-deep pool of LCL. He was at her side in an instant, cradling her head and brushing away her close-cropped hair from her forehead as he gently lifted her face...

... only to stare into Mana's dull, lifeless gray eyes.

Shinji screamed as his eyes snapped open. He bolted upright in his bed and looked about frantically in the darkness of his room before he finally got his bearings and sank back down onto his pillow. For a few minutes his ragged breathing was the only sound he heard in the darkness until a gentle knock came from his door.

"Shinji...?" mumbled a sleepy feminine voice from the other side. "You 'kay?"

A long pause hung in the air.

"Shinji?" the voice repeated worriedly.

"I'm fine," the boy finally mumbled.

He barely heard a faint sigh of relief. "You sure?" the voice asked.

"Yes, I'm sure, Misato. Thanks."

"Ask him if he wants a teddy bear too," grumbled another voice from the hallway.

"Go back to bed, Asuka," Misato said firmly.

Shinji thought he heard the redhead mutter something as she returned to her room.

There was a brief pause. "Well," Misato said gently, "if you're sure, I guess I'll see you in the morning."

Shinji didn't bother to answer; he stared at his darkened ceiling for a long time after his guardian's footsteps faded down the hallway. He tossed fitfully on his mattress for what seemed like hours, but sleep hovered tantalizingly out of his reach as a host of possibilities and 'what ifs' ran through his mind.

When sleep finally claimed him sometime before dawn, it brought him little comfort.

- - - - -

"Shinji... don't bother me with insignificant details."

A cold click sounded in the Third Child's ear as the phone call abruptly ended. Slowly, he lowered the pay phone's receiver and stared at it silently for a minute before he set it down on its hook. With a frustrated sigh, the boy jammed his hands into his pockets and sullenly shuffled down the street.

_Is it so wrong to keep Mana from going through what I did?_ Shinji thought to himself as he kept his eyes glued to the sidewalk. _Are you _that _selfish, Father?_

Shinji sighed and shook his head bitterly. He already knew the answer—not that it surprised him. His father always seemed too busy running NERV to think about anything but himself.

The troubled boy's blood froze when one thought crossed his mind:

_He didn't feel the same way about Mother, did he?_

Shinji considered that for a second and, as absurd as it sounded, it seemed to make sense. Why else would he have let her conduct the activation experiment? If he knew the risks involved with the test, and he had loved her as much as he said, why didn't he try and stop her? Why—?

The deafening blare of a car horn snapped Shinji back to reality. With a start and a strangled cry he stumbled backward, tripped over the curb, and landed on his backside on the sidewalk. He picked himself up off the concrete as the driver of the car he had walked in front of glared at him before speeding off with a muffled curse.

"Yo, Shinji! You okay, man?" called someone from behind him.

Shinji turned toward the voice and barely managed to nod before Touji ran up to him and smacked him firmly on the back of the head. "Whaddya think you were doing, you numbskull?" the tall boy yelled as he waved his hand in the general direction of the crossing lights. "Did you go color-blind all of a sudden?"

"Sorry. I've got a lot on my mind. I don't want to talk about it."

Touji snorted as the light turned green. "Sure, whatever," he muttered.

The rest of the trip to school was quiet and relatively uneventful; Shinji silently walked down the street and kept staring at the ground while Touji uneasily gave his gloomy friend a wide berth. It wasn't until they reached the school grounds before the taller boy finally spoke up.

"So...?" he prompted.

"What?" Shinji mumbled.

"So what happened?"

"I said I don't want to talk about it."

"Not that, you twit," Touji said with a hopeful grin as he opened the front door of the school. "I'm talking about yesterday!"

As Shinji made his way through the crowd of students in the lobby, he let out an exasperated sigh that was quickly swallowed up by the din that only several dozen socializing teenagers could make. "Sorry, Touji," he apologized, "but I'm not going to tell you."

"What!?" exclaimed Touji. "Whaddya mean by that?"

Shinji looked to the ceiling before slowly shaking his head with a sigh. "I don't think it's right to kiss and tell—"

"Aha!" Touji shouted triumphantly. "So you _did_ kiss her! I knew it!"

"No! It's just an expression—"

"Come on! Let's hear it!" Touji urged excitedly. "What happened? How far didya get? First base? Second?"

"NO!"

He clapped Shinji on the shoulder. "You mean you did it, you stud?"

"For crying out loud, Touji," Shinji cried in exasperation, "_she's not that kind of girl!_"

Silence smothered the locker area like a blanket as all conversation suddenly ground to a screeching halt. Shinji gulped and fidgeted uncomfortably as he felt everyone's eyes on him. A long, pregnant pause hung in the air.

"So you struck out then, huh?"

The roar of laughter in response to Touji's question followed Shinji down the hall as he hung his head in embarrassment and made his way to the relative safety of the classroom.

- - - - -

"I think," Mana announced in an uneasy voice, "I'm going... to be... _sick._"

Ritsuko shook her head without looking up from her clipboard. "I _told_ you it wasn't going to taste good the other day, remember?" she called to the girl's image on the gigantic holographic image hanging above the control room.

The expression on Mana's face clearly showed her disgust. "I never thought it would be _this_ nasty."

"Just relax and try to concentrate, Mana," she replied. "You'll get used to it."

"Thanks, Doctor," the brunette replied politely. "I hope so." Her voice, however, didn't sound too convinced.

Misato watched Mana's face with a slight hint of amusement. "Look at it this way," she said reassuringly, "at least you got out of doing your assignments tonight."

"No offence, Misato, but right now I'd rather take the homework."

The violet-haired woman chuckled. "None taken. Just hang in there a little longer and try not to ruin the upholstery."

Mana nodded and closed her eyes. Soon the only things that could be heard in the room were the air conditioning's faint hum and the steady beep of the monitoring equipment. Seconds seemed to drag into hours in the quiet of the room until a sudden clacking of keys came from Maya's console. "It looks like we've got a good set of data here," the petite technician announced as the numbers started scrolling up her screen. "Take a look."

Ritsuko walked across the room and bent over the brunette's shoulder to get a better view of her monitor. "Her synch ratio's not bad for a first try," she said, nodding in approval. "Still, I don't think Asuka's got anything to worry about yet." She turned to the other technician sitting next to Maya. "How's she doing?"

The readout on Hyuga's screen reflected dully off the lenses of his glasses as he looked at his monitor. "Her pulse is a little high, but that's normal under the circumstances I guess. Other than that, everything's normal."

"So far, so good," Ritsuko murmured as a slight smile tugged at her lips. "How long will it take to upload the data into Balthasar?"

"Ten minutes, maybe less," replied Maya. "Then of course it'll take at least half an hour or so for processing and analysis."

The blonde allowed herself a small smile. "I think we've earned ourselves a break then." She turned to the girl's image hanging overhead. "We're done for now, Mana," she announced. "Good job. How are you feeling?"

The Fourth Child opened her eyes with a relieved look on her face. "Not too bad, but I'll feel a lot better once I get out of this stuff."

"Understood," Ritsuko replied. "We're running another batch of tests at 1700, so don't wander too far."

Mana smiled slightly. "Got it. Thanks, Doctor."

Misato glanced at the time displayed on one of the monitors in front of her. "Hey, you know," she said with a grin and a sly wink, "if you hurry you can probably catch Shinji before he leaves school."

The smile on the young pilot's face widened just before her image disappeared from the display.

Ritsuko, unfortunately, didn't share the girl's enthusiasm. She beckoned Misato over to her as the technicians began to file out of the control room, then waited for everyone else to leave before she folded her arms in front of her and glared at her old friend. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she growled.

Misato blinked. "What do you mean?" she asked innocently.

Anger flashed in Ritsuko's eyes. "You know damn well what I'm talking about," she said evenly.

Misato dismissed her colleague's comment with a shrug. "You worry too much, Ritsu. So they've been on a date. It doesn't mean they're going to run off and elope or something."

"All I'm saying is that you're forgetting where your real responsibilities lie. Our job is to keep Mankind safe from the Angels, not to play matchmaker."

"I'm just making the best of the situation."

"You know what I mean," Ritsuko snapped.

Misato's eyes narrowed slightly. "Since when was it a crime to look after Shinji's best interests?"

The blonde glared back at Misato. "Ever since it had a chance to interfere with our mission. You of all people should know that."

"So..." the indigo-haired woman said coolly as she arched an eyebrow, "you're telling me not to complicate things, then."

"Things are complicated enough already." Ritsuko huffed and looked up at the ceiling. "I can just see one of them doing something stupid and putting us all in jeopardy if the other gets in over their head." Her eyes narrowed as she glared at Misato again. "We can't afford to put everything at risk because of raging hormones, and the last thing we need is for you to encourage them!"

"And I'm saying that we can't stop them even if we try," Misato retorted, her voice turning shrill with anger. "For God's sake, they're _kids_, not machines! If you're so worried about emotions getting in the way of things then maybe you should get off your ass and finish developing the dummy plug system!"

Ritsuko's nostrils flared as she glowered at Misato. "Don't you _dare_ tell me how to do my job, _Major_," she snarled back through gritted teeth.

Misato opened her mouth to say something before she thought better of it and closed it with a snap. "Sorry, Ritsu," she said after a few moments. "That was uncalled for." She smiled wanly after a long, uneasy pause. "Truce?"

Ritsuko regarded Misato warily for a minute before her shoulders sagged as she let out a breath and allowed the tension drain out of her. She wearily nodded her head and began collecting her papers. "I guess I've forgotten what it was like when I was that age," she remarked with a sigh

"I'd rather forget what I was like," Misato replied darkly.

Ritsuko tucked her clipboard under her arm, then opened the door and waited for Misato to step out of the room before she let it close behind her. "You know," the blonde said as she fell into step beside her college friend, "you almost seemed like a real mother for a bit there."

Misato groaned and raised her eyes to the ceiling. "Some days I feel old enough to be one with both of those kids under my roof."

"Well, don't come crying to me. You volunteered."

"Don't remind me," Misato muttered.

Ritsuko gave her colleague a soft, sympathetic chuckle. "Tell you what—why don't you tell me all about raising your perfect little family after you buy us lunch?"

Misato stopped in her tracks and stared at Ritsuko. "_I'm_ buying?" she asked incredulously.

"Oh, stop being so cheap. Call it a concession for our little cease-fire."

"Why me?" protested Misato.

"Simple," the blonde replied with a faint smile on her lips. "You apologized first."

- - - - -

Shimmering waves of heat rose from the pavement while the afternoon sun played hide and seek among the handful of clouds that marred the otherwise flawless sapphire sky overhead. Unfortunately, neither the warmth of the sun on Shinji's face nor fact that school was finally over for another day lifted his spirits as he trudged along the sidewalk.

Asuka certainly hadn't helped. Ever since the beginning of the week the redhead had gleefully spread wild stories about Shinji's date to whoever cared to listen—and there was certainly no lack of interest. It was all wild speculation, of course, but Shinji kept quiet about the whole thing, answering the inevitable storm of questions with simple silence in the hopes that everything would eventually die down. To his chagrin, all that did was create wilder, juicier gossip about him and Mana as time went on. The rumor mill was funny that way.

As he half-heartedly shuffled down the street on his way to the train that would take him to headquarters for another round of testing, his thoughts lingered on something else entirely.

Mana. A pilot. The thought of that—or rather, the thought of what might happen to her—worried him more than anything.

He never noticed the two people behind him until he felt a hand clamp down firmly on his shoulder. Startled, Shinji jumped and let out a loud yelp.

"Oh hey, sorry Shinji," apologized Kensuke as he jerked his hand away.

"No problem." The pilot managed shove his troubled thoughts aside enough to give his friend a weak smile. "When did you get back from New Yokosuka?"

"This afternoon." Kensuke's eyes shone with enthusiasm from behind his glasses. "You should've been there. She was beautiful."

"She?" Shinji asked before he nodded his head in sudden understanding. "Oh right, that battleship you went to see."

"Yup." Kensuke's smile widened as he affectionately patted his camera bag. "Got all the footage right here. Nine fifteen-inch 50-caliber guns, six Vulcan cannons, eighteen surface-to-surface missile tubes and twelve cruise missile launchers all packed into a sleek frame that can do 40 knots—"

"That Shinji can turn into scrap just like _that_," laughed Touji with a snap of his fingers.

Kensuke groaned. "Man, you really know how to hurt a guy."

The tall athletic boy smirked. "It's a gift. Hey Shinji," he said as he turned to his other friend, "We're heading down to the arcade to try that new street racing game later. You coming?"

Shinji shook his head. "Sorry guys, I can't."

Touji's grin grew wider. "You lucky dog," he said. "Off to NERV to see Kirishima again, huh?"

Shinji simply grunted bitterly as he turned around and trudged down the street again.

Kensuke glanced worriedly at Touji. "What's eating him?" he asked, nodding at the pilot a few steps in front of them.

"Aw, he's just down 'cause Kirishima's been away from class the last few days." Touji shook his head and heaved a melodramatic sigh. "And after all the hot lovin' he got from her on their date, too."

Shinji bristled at his friend's remark. "It wasn't like that," he said evenly.

"Hey, what else am I supposed to think?" Touji demanded. "You won't tell me what happened, so all I have is what your demon roommate's been saying."

"And I keep telling you it's no one's business."

"Fine, fine." Touji raised his hands in front of him in a placating gesture. "Geeze, some friend you are," he grumbled. "Now how am I supposed to know what to do when I get a girlfriend of my own?"

Shinji stopped and spun around to look at Touji's smirking face. "It was one date," he protested. "That doesn't make her my girlfriend."

"…Yet." The taller boy interjected. "Hey, deny it all you want dude, but you'll be asking me to be you best man before you know it."

Shinji threw his hands in the air and walked down the street again, muttering.

Kensuke quickly fell into step beside him. "So," he said, trying to change the subject, "I hear Unit 03's already in Japan."

Shinji looked at his friend and blinked. "Unit 03?" he echoed.

"Yeah, the one they built in America. I hear it arrived at Matsushiro a few days ago." The brown-haired boy tilted his head quizzically at Shinji. "You mean you didn't know?"

"Misato never told me."

"I guess that's why they needed another pilot," Kensuke mused. "Kirishima's one lucky girl," he sighed with a touch of envy in his voice.

Shinji's gaze quickly returned to the sidewalk. "If you say so."

"I suppose Misato never told you about Unit 04 either, huh?"

Shinji shook his head.

"My dad said it disappeared along with the entire Second Branch. His section's been working overtime to try and figure out what went wrong."

"Did they say what happened?"

Kensuke shrugged. "Dunno. My dad says they were probably doing some sort of test."

Shinji stiffened as anxiety gnawed at his thoughts again. "Did they say what kind of test they were doing?" he asked uneasily.

"Not exactly. It might have been an activation test of the new S2 engine." The sandy-haired boy stuck his hands in his pockets and regarded Shinji for a moment. "You're worried about Kirishima, aren't you," he said; it was more of a statement than a question.

Shinji gaped, taken aback by his friend's sudden accusation, before he regained his composure and simply shrugged.

"You wouldn't be so concerned unless you care about her, right?"

A long, awkward silence hung in the air before Shinji finally mumbled, "Maybe."

Kensuke smirked and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "You're an awful liar, you know that?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yeah, right," Touji remarked. "I've been watching you. You've been staring at her desk more than Ayanami looks out the window."

Shinji thought about that for a moment. "I guess," he finally said as he felt his cheeks grow warm.

Kensuke laughed and playfully slapped Shinji on the back. "Looks like the world's lost another bachelor," he quipped as he grinned at Touji.

Shinji groaned and rolled his eyes. "Cut it out, Kensuke."

"Sorry. Couldn't resist. With all the rumors flying around about the two of you—"

"Hey," Touji interrupted as he glanced up the street, "speak of the devil."

Kensuke and Shinji followed his gaze to see Mana running down the sidewalk toward them, waving. Touji nudged Kensuke and flashed him an 'I told you so' look.

"Mana?!" Shinji exclaimed, puzzled, as she stopped in front of him. "What are you doing here?"

"They let me out for good behavior," the brunette replied, beaming.

Shinji raised a confused eyebrow.

Mana giggled. "Seriously, I don't have another test until five, so I thought I'd come and keep you company." She looked at Touji and Kensuke. "If that's all right, that is."

A knowing grin spread over Touji's face. "Sure, Kirishima," he sniggered, "just don't wear him out too much."

Kensuke elbowed him in the ribs.

Mana's eyes narrowed suspiciously as they flicked between Shinji and Touji. "Okay, what's going on?" she demanded.

"Oh, don't mind Touji, Kirishima," Kensuke said apologetically. "He's just being a jerk because Shinji won't tell him what happened on your date."

"Hey!" Touji protested.

Mana placed her hands on her hips and glared at the tall boy's tanned face. "Suzuhara!" she said sternly. "What happened between me and Shinji on our date isn't really your business!"

"Um... yeah, well... I know, but..." Touji's face went crimson as he took a step back from the scowling girl and guiltily stared at his shoes.

"But," Mana said with a twinkle in her grey eyes as she smiled wickedly and stepped up to Touji, "since you wanted to know so much..."

She whispered something in Touji's ear; after a few seconds the boy's eyes widened with shock while his face turned an even deeper shade of red. Satisfied, the brunette stepped away from him and grabbed Shinji's hand. "That was very sweet of you to protect my honor like that, Shinji," she said, smiling. "Now come on. We mustn't keep anyone waiting."

Shinji glanced back at his friends as Mana led him away. The two boys simply stood there in the middle of the sidewalk; Kensuke looked first at Mana, then at Touji, then back to Mana again with a confused look on his face. Touji, on the other hand, stared at the pilots as if they had both suddenly sprouted an extra set of arms.

"There," the gray-eyed girl murmured into Shinji's ear as they walked away. "_That_ should keep him out of your hair for a while."

"What on earth did you say to him?"

Mana smiled mysteriously. "Never mind. A girl's got to have some secrets."

- - - - -

The train was relatively empty when the two pilots stepped aboard, with the exception of a dozen or so lucky people who managed to get off work early. Mana led Shinji to an empty seat and waited for him to sit next to the window before she flopped down beside him. "Whew!" she breathed as she sank back against the padded seat and stifled a yawn. "Synchronization and harmonization tests, combat footage review... I'm bushed." she closed her eyes with a groan. "Does it ever get any easier, Shinji?"

There was no response from the boy sitting beside her. Curious, Mana opened one eye, then the other. She turned her head and saw Shinji sitting quietly, his eyes focused on some invisible spot on the back of the seat in front of them.

"Hel-_lo!_" the brunette called as she waved her hand in front of the pilot's eyes, then barely held back a giggle when he jumped as his mind was jerked back to reality. "I guess I'm not the only one who's tired," she said with a bemused look on her face.

Her smile disappeared when Shinji didn't answer. "Did I say something wrong?" she asked.

Shinji avoided her gaze. "Sorry," he mumbled. "I've got a lot of things on my mind."

Mana nodded. "Want to talk about it?" she asked as she gently placed her hand on his.

The boy couldn't help but blush at her touch. "I... I don't think you want to hear it," he stammered.

"Try me."

Shinji moved his hand out from Mana's grasp and absently rubbed his sweaty palms on the legs of his trousers. "I..." he said before his voice faltered. Hesitantly, the boy cleared his throat and tried again. "Mana... I'm sorry," he finally whispered.

The brunette's brow creased in concern. "Sorry?" she asked. "What do you have to be sorry for?"

Shinji looked at her puzzled face for a second before he turned his head away and stared at the back of the seat in front of him again. "I've been thinking..." he said softly, "and… and I don't think it's a good idea for us to see each other anymore."

Mana gasped; her eyes widened as her stomach suddenly twisted itself into a knot. "Shinji..." she asked in a hushed voice, "why?" Her eyes flitted about as she frantically racked her brain, searching for a reason behind Shinji's sudden change of heart. "Is it something I did? If it is, I'm—"

The boy shook his head. "No, it's not you."

"Oh," she said after a moment. "So… you don't like me like that anymore? I thought that after our date we..." Her words trailed off as she found she couldn't complete the sentence.

Shinji smiled weakly. "No, Mana," he said. "I..." He cleared his throat again and let out a breath. "I... I do like you. A lot."

Unfortunately, his confession didn't raise either teen's spirits.

"Then what's the problem?" she asked. "I think I deserve to know why."

Shinji shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "The thing is..." he mumbled, "…it's because you're a pilot."

Mana blinked and parted her lips involuntarily as confusion quickly replaced her anxiety. "What's that supposed to mean?" she asked. "Is there something in the regulations that says NERV personnel can't date?"

"Well, no."

"Then I don't see—"

Shinji sighed. "Piloting an Eva isn't all fun and games, Mana. It brings pain and suffering to everyone around you. And," he continued as he looked meaningfully into her eyes, "you can get hurt or... or worse."

Mana placed her hand on his shoulder. "Shinji," she said gently, "Misato explained everything to me on my first day of training. I know the risks."

"And you still said yes?" Shinji asked, stunned.

The brunette nodded. "Have you ever felt so strongly about something that you'd do everything you could to do it, no matter what?"

Shinji looked at her and shook his head.

"You wouldn't understand, then," Mana said with a small sigh, "but that's what I feel about being a pilot."

"But you could get killed!"

"I'm doing what I think is right," she replied with a determined gleam in her eyes.

"But if something happened to you, I..." His voice trailed off as he considered the unthinkable again.

Mana smiled at him. "If it makes you feel any better, I'll worry about you too."

"But," Shinji blurted, "I even called my father to ask him to take you off the roster—"

The brunette interrupted the boy with a shocked gasp as the color drained from her face. "You did _what?_" she asked in a horrified whisper.

Shinji stared down at his feet and tried to say something, but Mana cut short his feeble reply.

"Shinji, did you even think of asking me how _I_ feel about everything?" The girl's anger grew with every clack of the train's wheels against the track beneath them. "How could you be so... so..." She stuttered and waved her hands as she struggled to come up with the right word. "_Selfish!?_"

Shinji winced as the word he had used to describe his father earlier that day was thrown back in his face. "It doesn't matter," he said defensively. "He wouldn't listen—"

"That's not the point!" Mana cried, ignoring the curious looks of the other passengers as they looked her way.

There was a long silence between the two teens as the train came to a halt with a slight lurch. Mana slumped against the seat, her anger spent, and looked sadly at the boy beside her while another bunch of passengers boarded the car and milled around them. She swallowed as hard as she could, but the lump that had suddenly appeared in her throat refused to go away. "Shinji..." she whispered in a thick, quavering voice, "if you really... I mean..." she gulped again and blinked her suddenly moist eyes. "If that's how you really feel, then... then I think we both need to think about this more..."

Without another word, she bolted from her seat and recklessly shoved her way through the now crowded train, raising more than a few surprised and angry shouts from the other passengers she left in her wake. Shinji called after her, but she ignored him and darted out onto the platform a split second before the doors slid closed behind her. He stared out the window and watched helplessly as she disappeared into the crowd moments before the train pulled away from the station.

- - - - -

CONTINUED...

- - - - -

Author's Notes (08-18-2004)

Thought I'd gone and disappeared, did you? You won't get rid of me that easily! :P

My apologies for the slowdown. This chapter has been the most challenging part of the revision so far, and took quite a while to actually nail down for some reason. Real-life stuff and a not-so-healthy dose of writers' block didn't help things, either. I hope it was worth the wait.

But I think I've finally figured out the formatting. Third time's the charm, they say.

Once again, a big thank-you goes to 'notime' and 'chewy' for their prereading and feedback, and to you readers for… well, reading.


	4. Chapter Four: Something to Believe In

_Disclaimer:_ Neon Genesis Evangelion/Shin Seiki Evangelion, Girlfriend of Steel, and all related concepts and characters are the property of Gainax, Project EVA, Movic, AD Vision, Manga Entertainment, and other copyright owners and are used without permission.

**Promises**

Chapter Four: Something to Believe In

- - - -

Rei Ayanami quietly laid her book bag down on her desk and took her seat, pausing briefly to move a few strands of powder blue hair out of her eyes before she propped her head up with her left arm and glanced around the classroom.

It was still early; there was still a good ten or fifteen minutes before class started – plenty of time for the rest of her classmates to arrive. The students who had already shown up chatted among themselves as they waited to begin another day. Well, almost all of them; as Rei surveyed the room she saw the Third Child glumly hunched over his desk several rows away, his head resting on top of his crossed arms.

Rei turned back to the window and let her mind wander. She watched students make their way through the school grounds below in a steady trickle until she realized that the classroom was suddenly quiet. She blinked. Had the teacher arrived early? She dismissed that thought immediately; the class representative would certainly have said something if he had. Puzzled, she turned her head slightly to look around the room.

She raised an eyebrow as Mana timidly stepped toward Shinji's desk and stopped, holding her book bag in front of her with both hands. The entire classroom seemed to hold its collective breath as rest of the students watched intently, looking for some sign that confirmed the rumors that had been swirling about the pair for nearly a week. Rei quietly studied the couple as Mana whispered something to the boy, but she was too far away to make out what the brunette was saying.

_Curious_, she thought.

Shinji impassively stared at his desktop and ignored the girl standing next to him until, finally, the Fourth Child shuffled dejectedly to her own desk and slid into her seat. As Rei watched, the girl half-heartedly tried to hang her book bag on its hook on the side of the desk but missed the mark completely. The bag fell to the floor with a loud thud. Mana didn't seem to hear it; instead, she folded her arms on her desk and let her head sink into the crook of her elbow.

The room exploded into frantic whispers as several students tactlessly discussed the scene that had just played out before them. Hikari quickly made her way down the aisle and gently reached for Mana's arm. The freckled girl murmured something to Mana that Rei couldn't hear, but reluctantly withdrew her hand when the brunette shook her head. Hikari nodded and took a few steps back before she snapped her head around to fix Shinji with a scowl.

Shinji seemed to be too lost in his own misery to care. Hikari opened her mouth and was about to say something to him when Asuka grabbed her elbow and whispered something in her ear. With a final glance at the couple, Hikari nodded and let the redhead lead her away.

Suddenly aware that she had been staring, Rei quickly looked back out the window and turned her gaze back to the horizon. Her forehead crinkled in a delicate frown. It seemed unlikely to her that Shinji would hurt anyone – especially someone who, even if the rumors she had overheard were halfway true, he had feelings for – and yet…

"Ayanami?"

The sound of Hikari's voice brought Rei's thoughts back to the present. Startled, she turned her head and saw the other students already standing at their desks. Her cheeks grew warm as she felt everyone's eyes – including the teacher's – watching her expectantly. Her crimson eyes widened for an instant before she regained her composure and stood to join the rest of the class.

- - - -

Asuka shaded her eyes from the sunlight with her hand and scanned the schoolyard. She nodded to herself when spied a lone figure leaning against a tree in the corner of the grounds. With a slight smile on her lips, she calmly strolled to the shady patch of grass he was sitting on and leaned against the tree. "I thought I'd find you here," she announced.

If Shinji had heard her, he didn't show it. Instead, he plucked a blade of grass from the ground beside him and silently stared off into the distance.

Asuka nudged the untouched bento box beside him with her toe. "Not hungry?" she asked.

Shinji shrugged without looking at her. "I guess I've got a lot of things on my mind," he replied.

"I'll bet. That was quite a show you two put on this morning." The redhead didn't see the painful expression that shot across Shinji's face as she leaned back against the tree and placed her hands behind her head. "I hate to say I told you so," she continued, "but I said she wasn't your type."

Shinji looked up sharply but stopped his gaze at Asuka's knee, knowing what was in store for him if she had any reason to think that he was trying to steal a peek up her skirt. "Oh no," he replied softly, turning his head again to look back across the schoolyard. "You're wrong."

Asuka blinked, confused, before she lifted her head off her hands and looked down at her roommate. "Really? Then why…?"

"You wouldn't understand."

The redhead raised a puzzled eyebrow. "Oh-kay," she said, drawing out the last syllable as she let her head fall back against the trunk again. "I guess it's really not my business anyway. I just wish you'd get over her already." A smile suddenly brightened her face. "I know!" she exclaimed with a snap of her fingers. "Why don't we head to that burger place down the street after school so you can take your mind off of everything?"

Shinji shook his head.

"You sure? It's Misato's turn to cook dinner tonight, you know."

"Yeah, I'm sure. Thanks anyway."

Asuka shrugged. "Your loss. Don't say I didn't offer."

Shinji held the grass blade between his fingers for a moment before he absently tossed it away. It was easy enough for Asuka to tell him to get over Mana but, try as he might, he found that he just couldn't get her out of his thoughts. Add to that the fact that, like it or not, they would still be working closely together, both at school and at NERV…

He thoughtfully shook his head again. She had a point. Maybe he needed to talk with someone who had been through this sort of thing to help him get through this, or at least let him get everything off his chest—but who?

Kaji would have been the obvious choice. Unfortunately, Shinji hadn't seen him since their talk in the lounge the week before.

His father? Shinji nearly laughed out loud at the thought.

That left…

"Hey, are you even listening to me?"

"Huh?" Shinji started as Asuka's voice shattered his thoughts. "What's the matter?"

"Oh, for…" the redhead grabbed the back of Shinji's collar with one hand and pointed at the shrinking crowd of students filing into the school with the other. "Didn't you hear the bell?"

"Uh, I guess not. I've got a—"

"A lot of things on your mind, I know." Asuka rolled her eyes and sighed before she grabbed the boy's arm and helped him to his feet. "Come on, hurry up or you're going to be late."

"Yeah, sure," Shinji mumbled before he knelt down, grabbed his lunch, and followed her inside.

- - - -

The lamp sitting on the corner of Mana's desk lit up her bedroom with a cheerful glow, but it did little to brighten the girl's sour mood. She chewed thoughtfully on the end of her pencil and tapped her finger on the cover of her textbook while trying not to grimace in disgust as she stared at the stack of neatly typed papers in front of her.

_Evangelion pilots_, she thought bitterly, _shouldn't have to do trigonometry_. Unfortunately, it seemed that neither NERV nor the Japanese school system agreed with that philosophy.

"Well," she muttered to herself as she straightened herself in her seat, "I might as well get started."

An hour later, a doodle of a cat smiled back at her from an otherwise blank sheet of paper. Mana closed her books with an exasperated sigh and slid them into her schoolbag. For several minutes she dejectedly leaned back in her chair, unsure of what to do, before she opened a drawer, pulled out a small metal box, and gently pried its lid open.

A pair of neural connectors sat inside the foam-lined compartment and gleamed under the soft glow of the lamp. She plucked one out of the container and gazed at it, almost mesmerized by the light playing off the device's polished surface. She couldn't help but notice that its cobalt blue finish was almost the same shade as Shinji's eyes…

Mana squeezed her eyes shut as she suddenly realized where her thoughts were taking her. The bauble slipped from her fingers and skittered along the wooden surface of her desk. When she opened her eyes again, she found the connector resting against the base of a small, black picture frame. Her hand reached over after a moment's hesitation and lifted the photo up. A faint smile tugged at her lips as she remembered the day the picture was taken.

Her smile, along with those memories, faded as Shinji's words from the day before, words that now rang hollow in her ears, came back to her:

"_I... I do like you. A lot."_

Mana gently sat the picture down next to the base of her lamp. She folded her arms on the desk and rested her chin on them with a weary sigh. Her gaze moved from side to side – from the neural connector sitting off to the side of the desk, to the photo, and back again.

"Enough to let me keep a promise to myself, Shinji?" she whispered.

Shinji's face shyly smiled back at her from the photograph and said nothing.

- - - -

Shinji gloomily trudged up to his apartment and slid open the door. His afternoon classes did little to distract him or to clear his mind; if anything, it gave him more time to brood over his predicament. By the time he got home his mind was reeling with so many questions and conflicting thoughts that he didn't notice the sounds of chopping coming from the kitchen. "I'm home!" he called.

"Welcome home," answered Misato's muffled voice. "I'm in here."

Shinji kicked off his sneakers and placed them neatly on the mat next to the door before shuffling down the hallway toward his guardian's voice. He pressed his lips into a thin line as he tried to think of what to ask her. After all, she and Kaji had gone through so many ups and downs that it seemed as if their whole relationship was one long fight. If anyone could help him straighten things out—

Shinji abruptly stopped when he turned the corner and entered the kitchen. The sight of Misato with a large knife in her hand and an apron over her usual tank top and cut-offs immediately chased any thoughts out of his suddenly panicking mind. It took a moment for him to find his voice again when he realized that his guardian, whose cooking skills usually involved something to do with the microwave or instant ramen (usually both), was actually trying to cook something from scratch. "Misato…" he asked warily as his eyes flicked suspiciously to the blade in her hand, "what are you doing?"

"Chopping onions," Misato replied with a cheerful smile. "What does it look like?" She set the knife down next to a cutting board and dabbed at her eyes with a corner of her apron before picking it up again. "I figured I should do something different for a change."

Shinji cocked an eyebrow at the indigo-haired woman. "In other words, we're out of instant stuff, right?"

"Yeah, that too."

Shinji surveyed the kitchen, unable to shake the growing feeling of apprehension that had settled in the pit of his stomach. "Can I give you a hand with anything?" he asked.

"Oh no, that's all right. You just sit down and relax. I've got everything under control."

"But Misato—"

"First rule of the kitchen: never argue with the person holding the knife." Misato waggled the gleaming blade in Shinji's direction with a wicked smile to emphasize her point before she grabbed another onion and went back to her work.

Shinji opened the refrigerator and grabbed a can of soda. "But, uh..." he replied hesitantly as he sat at the table, "aren't you supposed to peel onions first?"

The chopping suddenly stopped. Misato paused and stared at the papery brown bits now hopelessly mixed in with the chunks on the cutting board in front of her. "I knew that," she grumbled before she scraped everything into the garbage and reached for another onion.

The sound of the knife striking the cutting board soon resumed its slow, uneasy rhythm. "Misato," Shinji asked after a moment, "can I ask you something kind of personal?"

Misato lifted the lid off a pot bubbling away on the stove. The spicy aroma of curry and something else Shinji couldn't quite recognize filled the air. "Depends," she replied as she tossed the onion pieces inside and gave the pot's steaming contents a quick stir. "What's on your mind?"

Shinji looked down at the tabletop and nervously ran his finger around the rim of his now empty soda can as his cheeks flushed slightly. "Uh… when you and Kaji were dating—"

The indigo-hair woman nearly dropped the lid. "Whatever he said isn't true," she said hastily.

Shinji raised his head and blinked. "Huh?"

Misato looked back at her charge, puzzled. "You mean he hasn't said anything stupid to you again?"

"I haven't seen him since last week."

Misato sheepishly mumbled something and put the lid back on the pot.

"Uh, anyway," Shinji continued hesitantly, "you two fought a lot, didn't you?"

The older woman paused for a moment and sighed. "You could say we've had more than our fair share."

"But… you always made up after, right?"

Misato chuckled softly as a wide grin split her face. "Making up's usually the best part of a relationship." Her brow suddenly furrowed. "Hey, wait a second," she said thoughtfully, "don't tell me you and Mana…?"

The pilot nodded glumly and went back to staring at the table.

"Ah, I see," she murmured, nodding. "Well, I guess it had to happen sooner or later."

Shinji's head snapped up. His eyes narrowed as he fixed Misato with a stony glare. "What do you mean by that?"

Misato defensively raised her hands in front of her. "All I mean is that all couples fight at least once in a while."

"Oh." The boy went back to fidgeting with the can. "Uh… well, it was a little more serious than a fight."

A look of chagrin crossed Misato's face. "Uh-oh," she said gravely. "What happened?"

After a moment's hesitation, Shinji took a deep breath and told his guardian everything that had happened over the past week, from the phone call he had had with his father and the conversation between him and Mana on the train on their way to headquarters – Misato winced at that – to what had happened at school earlier that day. After he finished, a heavy silence hung over the kitchen as he slumped against the back of the chair.

"Ouch," Misato said softly after a minute. "So, now what?"

Shinji heaved a gloomy sigh. "I don't know."

Misato placed a hand on her hip and pursed her lips in thought. "Well," she said after a moment, "I think talking with her about it would be a good start."

The young pilot folded his arms on the table and rested his chin on them. "What's the point? She probably hates me by now."

"What makes you say that?"

"After what I did?" Shinji shot his guardian an incredulous look. "I wouldn't be surprised."

"I think she'd hate you more if you _don't_ talk," Misato pointed out. "An apology and a few words will go a long way. You don't want misunderstandings to ruin a perfectly good thing. Besides, if things don't work out, at least there won't be any hard feelings, right?"

The boy gave a half-hearted shrug. "I suppose."

Misato walked up behind Shinji and gently placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "At least try it, okay? It worked with Kaji most times."

Shinji looked back at her with a confused look on his face. "Most times?" he repeated.

"Well, sometimes he needed to use a little more persuasion," Misato replied with a sly wink.

Shinji was about to ask her what she meant by that, but the grin on her face made him realize that he really didn't want to know.

- - - -

The arcane symbols decorating the ceiling and floor of Gendo's cavernous office seemed to glow with a pale light of their own as he sat at his desk. The commander of NERV sat motionless, moving only to set his elbows on the desk and push his tinted glasses up the bridge of his nose. His brow furrowed slightly while he coldly analyzed his situation before he deliberately reached across the desk and placed a black stone on the lacquered go board in front of him. "I just had a word with Doctor Akagi," he remarked.

The slender, gray-haired man sitting across the desk from him raised his eyebrows as he reached for a teacup. "Oh? And what did she have to say?"

"She seems to have some issues with some factors that may affect the Fourth Child's performance."

"Don't tell me she's starting to second-guess herself," Fuyutsuki replied with a hint of amusement in his voice.

Gendo sat back in his chair. "Hardly. I believe she is concerned over trivial matters."

The porcelain cup froze halfway to Fuyutsuki's lips. "You're referring to the Fourth Child's relationship with your son? That hardly seems trivial."

"A mere distraction, nothing more."

Fuyutsuki set the teacup back down on its saucer with a faint clink. "I take it you won't be making any changes, then?"

"There is no need. Her test results are acceptable, no matter what Doctor Akagi seems to think, and Major Katsuragi has reported that the girl's training is progressing according to schedule. She will perform the activation test of Unit 03 this weekend as planned."

"And the fact that she's been dating Shinji?"

"If anything comes of it, it can be worked to our advantage just like everything else."

Fuyutsuki's eyes narrowed, but he said nothing as silence hovered over the two men. "Speaking of our newest pilot," he added casually after a moment, "I took the time to take a look at her personality profile. Have you had a chance to read it yet?"

Gendo grunted noncommittally.

The older man returned his attention back to the game. "In many ways she's a lot like Yui was."

Fuyutsuki was so intent on analyzing the stones on the board that he didn't notice the wistful smile that appeared on Gendo's lips for the briefest of moments before it was buried behind his usual cold, impassive mask.

"I know," came the reply.

- - - -

Mana silently stood alone in the elevator as it whisked her away into the bowels of Central Dogma. She barely noticed the clicking of the floor indicator as she leaned against the back wall, her arms folded across her chest, and tried to clear her mind of the jumble of thoughts and emotions that had been running through her head over the last couple of days. After all, the last thing she needed was to have Doctor Akagi chew her out her slipping synch scores on top of everything else.

She felt a faint lurch as the elevator came to a halt. Mana let her gaze travel instinctively to the doorway as it slid open – and stifled a nervous gasp when she saw Shinji step aboard. Their eyes met briefly until Shinji blinked anxiously and looked away to face the front of the lift. He stiffly stood at the front of the car, motionless, as the two pilots resumed their descent.

Mana's frantic heartbeats grew louder in her ears as she stared at the back of Shinji's silver and blue plug suit, hoping that he would turn around and look at her again. Her mind instantly filled with things to say to him but she just couldn't open her mouth. Instead, she nervously bit her lower lip and shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other as the minutes ticked away.

"Mana?"

Mana started as Shinji's voice, barely louder than a whisper, shattered the silence between them. Her stomach lurched, but whether it was from her nervousness or the fact that the elevator was slowing down, she couldn't say.

"Y-yes?" she managed to squeak through her suddenly tight throat.

"I've been doing some more thinking... well, about us, and…"

Mana held her breath and steeled herself for the words she had been hoping she wouldn't hear.

"…can we get together sometime?"

She tore her gaze from the ceiling and stared in stunned silence at the boy in front of her. He still had his back to her, but she saw his ears redden as his head tilted downward as if he was staring at the floor. "I… I think we need to talk," he mumbled before he hurriedly stepped out into the hallway without looking back.

Mana chewed her lower lip thoughtfully, her eyes following Shinji's retreating back, until the doors started to close.

"Shinji!"

The boy lifted his head and slowly turned around as Mana thrust her hand between the elevator's doors. He found himself staring into her steel-gray eyes as the panels stopped with a jerk and slid open again.

"After we're done tonight…" Mana said hesitantly, "Can you walk me back?"

Shinji shifted his feet slightly, his cheeks turning crimson. "Um," he replied uncertainly, "I was going to get a lift home with Misato…"

Mana felt the floor disappear from under her feet as disappointment washed over her.

Shinji smiled weakly at her. "But I don't think she'll mind once I tell her. See you after testing, then?"

Mana returned the boy's smile with a timid one of her own. "Sure. I'll see you then."

Shinji nodded as the doors finally closed between them.

Mana leaned back against the wall of the lift in relief and let her breath explode out of her lungs. Her smile widened for an instant before it suddenly froze on her face as a new wave of anxiety and tumultuous thoughts swept through her mind. She kicked at a scuffmark on the floor and scowled.

"Great," she muttered. "How am I supposed to concentrate _now?_"

- - - -

The sun was little more than a faint purple smudge on the horizon by the time the two pilots made their way to the bus shelter and hesitantly sat down on opposite ends of the cold wooden bench. Except for the cawing of birds coming home to roost and the shrill chirping of cicadas, everything was quiet for several long minutes.

"Well?" Mana finally prompted.

Shinji briefly glanced at Mana before he squirmed in his seat and quickly looked away, blushing.

"You said you wanted to talk."

"Um… Y-yeah." Shinji lifted his gaze and quietly watched the streetlights quietly flicker to life above them one by one. "Mana," he asked uncertainly, "Why do you want to be an Eva pilot so much?"

The Fourth Child shifted uncomfortably on the bench as her face clouded. "My father," she replied solemnly after a long pause.

"Your father wants you to become a pilot?" Shinji asked, puzzled.

"Not exactly." Her expression darkened, as if to match the gathering gloom. "He was a pilot with the UN security forces."

"Was?" Shinji repeated.

Mana closed her eyes and nodded slowly. "He… he was killed about six months ago while flying an attack gunship."

"Oh." Unsure of what to say next, Shinji sat quietly until the pieces of her story suddenly fell into place. His eyes widened as he turned back to her. "Are you saying what your father died in the first Angel attack?"

Mana paused before she looked down at the pavement between her feet and nodded. "At the time, all they said was that it was an accident. I didn't know what really happened until I… I saw…" Her voice trailed off. Shinji thought he saw a tear trickle down her cheek, but in the gloom it was hard to be sure.

After a while Mana felt something on her shoulder. With a start, she glanced up to see Shinji crouching in front of her, his face even with hers and a sympathetic look in his eyes. She smiled weakly and sniffled as she briefly placed her hand over his, unwilling to lose the comforting feel of his touch.

"I'm sorry," Shinji murmured. "I didn't know."

"That's all right. I'm okay." Mana blinked a few times before she took a long, shuddering breath and rested her hands in her lap. "When my father was away on assignment he wrote to me almost every day, telling me that he couldn't be with me because he was doing what he thought was right. He said that everyone should do what they can to make a difference in the world, and that he was doing what he could by protecting people who couldn't defend themselves."

"And you want to do the same."

The Fourth Child nodded. "I know he died doing something he believed in. I want to make a difference in this world like he did, and now I have a chance of doing it in a way almost no one else can."

After a moment Mana felt Shinji's hand slip from its perch. She instinctively grabbed at it before her hand paused for an instant in midair and finally settled down into her lap.

Shinji watched the girl in front of him, his expression unreadable. "You know," he finally said after a moment, "something tells me that nothing I say or do will change your mind about piloting." He paused before looking into her eyes. "Now that I know why it's so important to you… I'm not going to stand in your way. I just want you to be happy."

Mana's brow wrinkled. "But… how can I be happy if I have to choose between you and piloting?"

The corners of Shinji's mouth twitched. "Who said anything about choosing?"

"But I don't want to—" Mana protested before her mouth hung open for a second as his words sank in. "Does this mean…" she whispered, "that you want us to…?"

Shinji looked down at his feet a moment before raising his head again. Their eyes met for an instant before he nodded slightly with a timid smile. "If you'll forgive—"

He never finished his sentence as Mana wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly with a giddy laugh. The stunned boy stiffly returned the favor. "I guess that's a 'yes'," he gasped.

"Mmm-hmm." Mana released Shinji and nodded at him before motioning him to sit beside her.

Shinji's mind seemed empty of everything and yet moved a thousand miles an hour as Mana snuggled close to him and placed her arm behind his neck with a contented sigh. Nothing needed to be said for a long while; neither pilot made a sound, content to simply be alone in the growing twilight.

"Your turn," Mana suddenly whispered.

"Huh?"

The brunette looked up at Shinji. "I told you why I want to pilot. Now it's your turn."

"I don't know if you want to hear it."

Mana looked at the pilot indignantly. "Fair's fair."

Shinji opened his mouth to protest, but one look at Mana's determined expression was enough to change his mind. "All right," he sighed. He looked up and stared at a streetlight across the road. "After my mother died, my father simply left me with my uncle and disappeared. For ten years we barely spoke to each other. I didn't even know why he left until after he asked me to come and stay here a few months ago. I thought he wanted us to be together again, but I was just a tool to him, just someone to pilot the Eva." The hint of a smile crossed Shinji's lips. "When I finally heard him praise me after we defeated the Tenth Angel, it felt like I had become more than that. He treated me like I was _human_. I realized then that I want him to be proud of me instead of pushing me away. That's why I pilot, I guess. I want to matter to someone."

The girl in Shinji's arms gave him a squeeze. "You already do."

Shinji blushed. "M-Mana..."

"Shh." She silenced him with a finger to his lips before she paused with a thoughtful look on her face. "On the train the other day you said that piloting only brings pain and suffering to everyone, right?"

Shinji nodded.

"If I'm out there with you... if we face the pain and suffering together, it won't be as bad, will it?"

"I suppose."

The smile returned to Mana's face. "Good. Just remember that."

An awkward silence fell over the two teenagers. The birds and cicadas had long since fallen quiet; the couple's soft breathing and the distant whisper of traffic were the only sounds they heard as they held each other in the darkness.

"Shinji?" Mana finally whispered in a tiny voice.

"Yes?"

"What will happen if something goes wrong?"

Shinji thought for a moment. "There's fail-safes and overrides built into—"

Mana interrupted him with a shake of her head. "No, No. I mean…" she paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. "Will you look out for me out there? Will you keep me safe?"

The boy blinked in puzzlement before he reassuringly traced her cheek with his fingertips. "Of course I'll look out for you."

"Promise?" Mana looked up at his face. The light from the streetlamps above gleamed in her eyes, turning them into liquid silver.

Shinji firmly nodded back at her. "Promise."

The brunette smiled sweetly as her body relaxed in his arms. She nestled her head against Shinji's shoulder and nuzzled his neck. Almost without thinking, he rested his head on top of hers and gently stroked her mahogany hair before kissing her forehead.

Mana's eyes widened slightly. Her body stiffened at the boy's touch as she let out a tiny gasp. She looked up at Shinji, then closed her eyes as her body seemed to melt against his in response. Her pretty face and soft, inviting lips mesmerized the boy in her arms; before he knew it he had bent down and was nervously bringing his mouth closer to hers.

He closed his eyes, encouraged by her apparent willingness. He could feel her soft breath caress his cheek as they slowly drew closer. Shinji's anxiety grew with every slow, agonizing second. When their lips finally met, he was trembling so badly that their teeth came together with a sudden, almost painful click. He pulled back in surprise and embarrassment. "Sorry!" he whispered. "I—"

Shinji's apology was cut short as Mana grabbed the front of his shirt, pulled him to her, and eagerly kissed him.

It was an awkward, clumsy kiss to say the least, but what it lacked in technique it certainly made up for in raw emotion; to the two teens it was enough to make everything around them disappear into a world of warm, hazy bliss. A little while later—minutes, hours, the two neither knew nor cared—they were interrupted by the rumble of a diesel engine and the squealing hiss of hydraulic brakes. Mana swore under her breath, reluctantly opened her eyes, and pulled away from the stunned boy before she got up and hurriedly ran to the waiting bus. She climbed aboard and waved at him with a shy, apologetic smile just before the doors closed. It was all Shinji could do to wave back as the bus pulled away.

It was several minutes after the bus disappeared into the darkness before Shinji stuck his hands in his pockets and began the long walk back to the apartment. A brisk wind, cool and damp with a hint of rain, came from out of the night to greet him. It swirled around him and plastered his shirt against his skin, but he hardly noticed it.

The warmth from their kiss stayed with him all the way home.

- - - -

To be continued…

- - - -

Author's Notes (03-18-2005):

I'm terribly sorry for the slowdown again, folks. It seems like my muse decided to take a winter vacation this time. Add to that the trials and tribulations of real life (family, kids, the general chaos of the holiday season, moving, new job), and… well, you get the idea. Hopefully this will only be a temporary setback as everything else in my life settles down again.

Anyway, it looks like I'm back on track with the plot of the original fic… enjoy it while it lasts, because it will start to diverge again soon. And no, I'm not saying how or when. You'll have to wait just like everyone else. Nyah.

Okay, enough of my rambling. This time, I'd like to extend my thanks to Chibi Fenrir and the perpetually proficient prereading pair of 'notime' and 'chewy' for their valuable input – and, of course, to all of you who have taken the time to read this fic. Reviews and emails are always welcome as usual. See you next chapter – which, at this rate, should be out by Christmas 2010.

Just kidding. No, really.


	5. Chapter Five: Flames of Love

_Disclaimer:_ Neon Genesis Evangelion/Shin Seiki Evangelion, Girlfriend of Steel, and all related concepts and characters are the property of Gainax, Project EVA, Movic, AD Vision, Manga Entertainment, and other copyright owners and are used without permission. The author does not intend to profit from this work of fiction – if he did, he'd probably update a hell of a lot faster.

**Promises**

Chapter Five: Flames of Love, Flames of War

* * *

Icy, bone-numbing cold crept up Mana's legs as Unit 03 slowly sank into the empty void of the Angel's body. She tried to move her humanoid machine to the distant edge of the yawning emptiness surrounding her, but her struggles only made it sink faster. The gigantic zebra-striped orb she had fired at a moment before silently winked back into existence above her, mocking her with its appearance.

Mana pointed the Eva's pistol downward and fired blindly, emptying the weapon's clip into the inkiness that had now risen to the machine's waist, but the void swallowed up the armor-piercing bullets without so much as a ripple on its featureless surface.

"Sohryu! Ayanami! Help!" she called as the titan began to sink faster. Unit 03 clutched at the prog knife still in its shoulder mount, but the handle slipped out of its grasp as the chill spread to Mana's fingers. The glowing blade tumbled end over end for an instant before it, too, disappeared.

The comm channel remained eerily silent.

She managed one last, desperate scream before the shadows completely engulfed her.

"_Shinji!_"

Her stomach somersaulted as her descent came to a sharp halt and her entry plug was plunged into blackness. Mana struggled in her seat, reaching for controls that were no longer there, until a voice suddenly called out to her from out of the darkness, a familiar voice that uttered two simple words:

"We're here."

Mana's eyes flew open. She looked around, disoriented, until she found herself in the Spartan interior of a UN transport. "I'm sorry," she apologized to the young man sitting next to her, "I must have dozed off."

Shinji smiled reassuringly at her. "Don't worry about it."

"But I… We…" The brunette turned her gaze out the window and stared sullenly at the flight crew working just outside. "I asked you to come with me so we could spend some together," she said with a disappointed sigh.

Shinji placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'll take whatever time we have. You never know what might—"

"Don't say it," Mana interrupted sharply.

"Sorry," Shinji replied hastily, jerking his hand away in surprise. After a moment he looked uncertainly toward the cockpit and unbuckled his seatbelt. "They're not going to wait for us forever," he said.

At that point Mana would have wanted everyone else to do just that—or at least give the two of them a few more precious moments alone together. Especially since…

_Get a grip_, she told herself. She couldn't let a nightmare rattle her, now that she was at the brink of realizing her dream. After today she would be an Evangelion pilot, ready to protect all of humanity from the Angels with Shinji at her side.

Father would have been proud.

She couldn't wait to tell—

"We should go."

Mana blinked and saw Shinji holding his hand out to her. With a reluctant nod she grasped it and let him lead her through the aircraft's hatch.

Perhaps it was the faint trembling in her fingers, the slight dampness of her palm, or the extra little squeeze she gave his hand as the two pilots stepped out onto the tarmac that made Shinji aware that something wasn't quite right. "Nervous?" he asked.

"A little."

"Me too."

"I wish you didn't have to go back," she grumbled.

"I know," Shinji replied. "I don't like it either, but I have to be on standby at headquarters." _Just in case something goes wrong_, he added silently.

Mana pouted. "It's not fair."

He paused for a moment before, with a shy smile, he clumsily pulled a small rectangular box out of his pocket and handed it to her. "Maybe this will help."

"What's this?" Mana asked as she took the package from him and peered at it curiously.

Shinji's cheeks reddened slightly. "Open it," he urged.

Mana gave Shinji a bemused glance before she opened the lid. Her eyes widened as she gingerly pulled out a polished, teardrop shaped green crystal dangling from a glittering silver chain. "Shinji!" Mana gasped as she stared at the early morning light dancing off the stone. "It's… it's…"

"It's yours," Shinji replied softly. "For luck."

"It's beautiful," Mana murmured before she looked back at Shinji with a smile.

The two teens stared at each other before Shinji broke the silence.

"Can I put it on you?" he asked, his voice shaking.

Mana nodded and turned around.

After a gulp and a lot of nervous fumbling, Shinji was finally able to slip the chain around her neck and fasten the clasp. Mana looked down and admired the pendant now nestled against her chest before she noticed that Shinji had come around in front of her and was looking at it as well.

"Asuka's right, you are a pervert," she chided

Shinji suddenly realized that his gaze was lingering uncomfortably close to something else on Mana's chest. He averted his eyes and blushed furiously. The brunette laughed and wrapped the flustered boy in a hug before he had a chance to stammer an apology. "Thank you," she whispered before kissing him fondly on the cheek.

"I can't leave you two alone for a minute, can I?" called a voice from behind her.

Both pilots looked to see that Misato had somehow managed to park a jeep unnoticed nearby and was now climbing out it with a wide grin on her face. The two pilots awkwardly broke their embrace.

"I… I guess I'd better go," murmured Mana.

"Yeah."

Mana reluctantly took a step back and smiled weakly while Shinji ducked back through the hatch. A moment later the exhaust from the aircraft's engines whipped around her, making her short chestnut hair dance in the hot air. She shielded her eyes from the swirling dust and watched as the transport lifted off and began its journey back to Tokyo-3.

"You ready?" Misato asked her with an almost apologetic look on her face.

The question fell upon deaf ears as Mana stared at the aircraft's shrinking silhouette.

Misato followed Mana's gaze for a moment before she wrapped her arm around the young pilot's shoulders and steered her to the entrance of the base. "Oh cheer up," she said encouragingly. "Pretty soon this'll be all over. There'll be plenty of time for you two to be together later."

Mana quietly nodded before she looked back over her shoulder just in time to see the retreating aircraft disappear back into the clouds.

- - - - -

The Matsushiro proving ground was small compared to NERV's other facilities. With most of the research and activity happening at the main branch—Matsushiro was used mostly for testing new equipment for Project-E—it was usually quiet on any given day.

Today, however, was anything but a normal day. The command center was a beehive of activity as technicians scurried everywhere, monitoring countless graphs, monitors, and printouts. Despite all of the commotion, Misato and Ritsuko stood in the middle of it all, two islands of calm in a sea of chaos.

Misato kept her attention focused on a screen showing the face of a young woman wearing a dark blue plug suit. "How are you doing in there, Mana?" she asked.

The Fourth Child nervously looked back at her. "Just fine, Misato." She wrinkled her nose in disgust. "But I still can't stand the taste of this stuff."

"We'll have the research division come up with a bubble gum flavor for you."

Misato's quip seemed to relax Mana a little, and even made the corner of the pilot's mouth twitch with a hint of a smile. "Thanks, but I prefer cherry."

"I'll see what I can do," Misato chuckled. "Now take it easy and we'll get started. You'll be out of there before you know it."

The girl nodded and closed her eyes.

Ritsuko glanced at a monitor, scribbled on her clipboard, and gave a satisfied nod. "Well, that got her calmed down a little. Thanks."

Misato switched off her mic feed to Mana's entry plug. "Don't mention it," she replied tersely, her cheerful façade now gone.

The blonde appraised her friend critically for a moment. "You're awfully uptight. Don't tell me you're hung over again."

"Very funny. I just don't want another mishap."

Ritsuko's face darkened. "You're telling me. The last thing anyone wants is another Nevada incident."

"Well, especially seeing as we're right at ground zero…"

"Thank you very much for that observation," Ritsuko snarled.

For a heartbeat there was an awkward pause between the two women until Ritsuko shook her head slightly with a faint smile. "Sorry, I guess you're not the only one who's tense."

"Apology accepted," Misato deadpanned. "You're buying lunch this time."

"It'll have to wait till payday." Ritsuko casually tucked the clipboard under her arm and stuck her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. "Just think—Unit 03 will be placed under your command after today's tests. You could literally take on the world with four Evas at your disposal."

"I'd love to trade it all in for a vacation right now," Misato replied with a humorless laugh.

"If you say so." Ritsuko glanced at a clock on the wall. "It's time. All set?"

"I'm about as ready as I'll ever be."

Ritsuko nodded before she looked to the ceiling for a moment and exhaled sharply. "All stations stand by," she ordered.

A chorus of affirmatives flooded the comm channel.

"All right then, let's do it. Shift the operation to phase two."

The two women watched the monitors as row after row of nerve connection indicators switched from red to green.

"We're now exceeding the absolute border," said an anxious voice that was barely audible over the chatter in the background. "Approaching activation threshold..."

Misato bit her lower lip and worriedly watched Mana's face while Ritsuko continued to keep her eye on the status board. The final bank of indicators suddenly flickered, then changed color.

"Activation!" someone shouted.

Unit 03's eyes blazed with a hellish light. The lights in the control center glowed crimson as alerts flashed on the screens and sirens blared. The Fourth Child's image on the monitor disappeared, hidden behind the curtain of hissing static that suddenly filled the screen.

"Mana!" Misato cried.

Ritsuko lunged for the main control console. "Abort!" she barked. "Break the circuit! Repeat, abort the test!"

As Ritsuko's fist smashed the glass cover over the emergency switch, a terrifying roar erupted from the monstrosity held inside the test chamber below. Misato barely had time to flinch and throw her arms up in front of her face before the world exploded.

- - - - -

Kouzou Fuyutsuki grimaced inwardly and stared at the static-filled display above him. An image of Evangelion Unit 03, securely restrained in its test chamber miles away, had filled the holographic screen until a moment ago. Then there was a blinding flash, Doctor Akagi's order to abort, then… nothing.

To say that he had a bad feeling about everything was a definite understatement.

"Go to stage one alert," he commanded. Almost instantly, a topographical image of the region replaced the static on the screen. A meager scattering of amber dots, the pitiful remnants of NERV's automated anti-Angel defences, littered the map.

_I wonder how the Old Men will like this little turn of events_, he mused.

"Cautious, aren't we?" asked a sardonic voice beside him.

Fuyutsuki glanced down at the younger man sitting by his side. "Men don't last long in positions like ours by being complacent, Ikari," he replied with a tight-lipped smile.

NERV's commander grunted. "Agreed," he replied. "We—"

Gendo's comment was interrupted by Makoto Hyuga's urgent voice from below. "Sir," the technician announced, "we're detecting movement and a huge power spike from the area."

Fuyutsuki shot Gendo a level glance before turning his attention to the main display. "Patch the video feed to the main display," he ordered. "Maximum magnification."

He would have preferred the static to what appeared on the display a second later. The devastation at what was once the site of the Matsushiro facility was clearly visible on the screen despite the graininess of the digitally enlarged image. Twisted metal, shattered chunks of concrete, and objects which may have been bodies littered the warped tarmac while flames and ropy columns of oily black smoke billowed out of what was left of the main building. Other than that, everything else was deathly still.

_At least there's something left_, the grey-haired man thought.

A chorus of gasps suddenly filled the air as the gaunt form of an Evangelion strode out of the wreckage.

Fuyutsuki's face darkened. "Just as I thought," he muttered.

Gendo ignored his assistant's comment. "Status of the pilot?" he enquired.

"Unknown," came Hyuga's strained reply. "We can't read any brainwave activity through the interference. She's breathing and we're still getting a pulse, but…." His voice trailed off uncertainly.

"Understood. Eject the entry plug and override the controls."

An armor plate blew away from Unit 03's back in a puff of smoke. "It's no use!" Maya exclaimed a second later. "The plug's still in place! It's rejecting the abort signal!"

"Very well," the commander replied without hesitation. "Designate the target as the Thirteenth Angel. Deploy ground forces and all three Evangelion units to intercept the target at Mount Nobe as planned."

"Ikari?" Fuyutsuki stared evenly at the man seated in front of him as shocked murmurs wafted up from below. "What about…?"

Gendo avoided the older man's gaze. "Mankind's survival takes priority over the pilot's safety."

"It's like that, is it?" Fuyutsuki paused for a moment and shifted his gaze slightly to watch the technicians frantically scurrying about beneath him. "So, Ikari," he said cooly, "what do we do now?"

Gendo's eyes never left the dot on the display above him as it inexorably moved toward the city. He leaned forward and rested his elbows on the console in front of him before he clasped his hands in front of his face.

"We wait."

- - - - -

The sun inched closer to the western horizon, bathing the landscape in hues of orange and amber. The trees covering a hill near the base of Mount Nobe stretched their lengthening shadows over the blue and white titan crouched out of sight behind it. The colossus silently clutched a massive sniper rifle and sat motionless, a slumbering giant slowly being swallowed by darkness. A songbird flitted onto the end of the rifle's barrel and began preening, blissfully oblivious to the nature of its new perch.

Rei patiently watched the Angel's steady advance across her display as it inched toward the blue dot that represented Unit 00. She glanced at the chronometer in a corner of the screen. Unless it changed its course, it would still be some time before the target would be within range.

There was nothing left to do but wait.

The bird perched on her rifle flew away with a panicked twitter an instant before a faint tremor shook the ground. The jolt was quickly followed by another, then more, each one slightly more powerful than the last. A rhythmic crashing sound soon accompanied them with the same steady tempo, growing louder and louder in a deafening crescendo until it seemed to drown out the rest of the world as the gaunt figure of Unit 03 lurched around the hill and passed by her hiding place.

Rei carefully set the rifle's bipod down on the hilltop in front of her Eva. Her mouth pressed into a thin line as she took aim at her target's back.

The midnight blue giant paused, as if it suddenly felt her eyes on it.

The targeting computer's beeping abruptly became a shrill, steady tone. The crosshairs on Rei's display blinked as they flashed to confirm a solid lock on an object between Unit 03's shoulders – the rounded end of a white cylinder jutting out from under a mass of webbing.

Kirishima's entry plug.

For a split second Rei's mind went back to the incident in the classroom the week before. If the Third Child had seemed so miserable over a simple misunderstanding, Rei couldn't imagine how devastated he would be if something were to happen to the Fourth Child. At the same time another part of her mind, one fuelled by pragmatism, practicality, and cold, hard logic, reminded her that the survival of humanity far outweighed the loss of one life. She could almost hear the Commander urging her to pull the trigger, to follow her orders and destroy the Angel looming before her while she had the chance.

Her finger hovered over the firing switch—and paused.

"No," she whispered.

It was all the Angel needed.

Unit 03 suddenly launched itself into the air with a quickness that seemed impossible for anything so massive. Unable to move because of her Eva's cramped position and too slow to bring her rifle to bear in time, Rei could only watch helplessly as the possessed goliath somersaulted overhead and pinned her to the ground with an earth-shattering crash.

- - - - -

"Ayanami!"

A yawning gulf opened under Shinji's stomach as Rei's agonized scream ended abruptly in a burst of static. Without thinking, he reached for his controls and willed his Eva to take a step in the stricken pilot's direction.

"Hold your position!"

Unit 01 froze mid-step at the sound of Gendo's voice. "But," Shinji protested, "Ayanami—"

"She is safe," Gendo interrupted curtly. "A recovery team is being dispatched."

The commander's words did little to comfort Shinji as the pilot watched Unit 03's icon begin moving again on his tactical display. "And Mana…?"

"Her condition is none of your concern," Gendo replied evenly, as if chastising a small child. "The target will be within firing range in five minutes. Do your job and let the crews do theirs."

Shinji bristled for an instant at his father's callous tone, but the anger welling up inside him was quickly doused as he realized that worrying about Mana's safety wouldn't solve anything. If she was in trouble, the best way he could help her was to deal with the Angel. If she was safe, there wouldn't be anything to worry about anyway.

If it was too late…

Shinji turned his attention to his viewscreen and squinted against the glare of the setting sun as he tried to push that thought out of his mind.

- - - - -

Mana frantically gulped a lungful of LCL through her mouth, ignoring the sickening, bloody taste of the viscous liquid as she fought back another wave of panic. Her hands tightly gripped the hard plastic handles of her control switches while a chill crawled up her spine to settle in the pit of her stomach.

The rhythmic lurching of Unit 03 beneath her and the ceaseless hissing over the speakers told her that something had gone horribly, horribly wrong.

One hand drifted up to reach for the small hard bulge lying under the material of her plug suit. She could almost feel her heart racing beneath her trembling fingertips as they brushed against the pendant. Desperately, she tried to keep her growing fear at bay by focusing on one thought as it ran through her mind again and again.

_Shinji will keep me safe. He promised._

- - - - -

Shinji's heart caught in his throat as he watched clouds of smoke and debris suddenly erupt around the Angel and obscure it from sight. At that range Shinji couldn't tell if it was explosions from missiles, mines, or high-explosive rounds, but it didn't matter—it strode through the firestorm without breaking its stride, the dark armor plates still pristine despite the deadly barrage. Shinji felt his insides churn in fear, but it wasn't for himself.

He grimly kept the crosshairs centered on Unit 03's hulking form. The ominous crash of the approaching Angel's footsteps pounded out a slow, steady rhythm as it relentlessly advanced on his position. It moved deliberately, almost leisurely, until it finally came to a halt a block away.

The rest of the world came to a standstill as the two behemoths faced each other in the fading daylight. Unit 03 hunched down on all fours, its arms and legs widely splayed as if ready to pounce. A sickening gray tongue lolled out of its mouth and dripped viscous fluid onto the pavement below while its head bobbed back and forth. A low growl sounded from its throat as it sized up its prey.

The crosshairs on Shinji's display flickered. He gritted his teeth and tried to keep his pallet rifle trained on the target but the controls seemed sluggish and uncoordinated. The anxiety gnawing at his thoughts made it almost impossible to concentrate on breathing, let alone on controlling a hundred-foot tall war machine.

Out of the billions of lives that were at stake, the only one that mattered to him at that moment was the one in the biomechanical giant a few hundred yards away.

He didn't want to fight for fear of hurting Mana—if she was still all right. Maybe, just maybe, his father or the command crew could find a way to get her out. Maybe all they needed was a little more time…

When Unit 03 suddenly snarled and whipped an impossibly long arm toward Unit 01's throat, Shinji knew that time was the one thing that he was out of.

He held his breath and pulled the trigger.

- - - - -

To be continued…

- - - - -

Author's Notes (4-11-2006)

Yes, that's right. It's taken me over a year to churn out this chapter. The past twelve months have been, well… crazy doesn't come near it, but it's the closest thing I can come up with now. To give you some idea, I'm writing this note from the departure lounge at the airport while waiting to leave for a business trip.

Still, it's amazing how much work it can be to shake off the rust and put virtual pen to virtual paper again. I was sure that this fic was buried so deep in the depths of archives that no one would ever stumble across it until I updated it and brought it back out of obscurity for a few weeks. Strangely enough, it was not long after I got everything back on track when reviews started coming in again. I thought that was rather peculiar, but in a good way. I did notice that each one of those emails had a common theme: to put it bluntly, 'it's good, now get off your butt and update'.

Okay, maybe my interpretation is _too_ blunt, but you get the picture.

I'm trying to devote more time to writing so you won't have to wait nearly as long for the next chapter (funny, I thought I said that last chapter too). Besides, I don't have the heart to leave all of you sitting at a cliffhanger for that long!

Now, about the chapter. The necklace that Shinji gives Mana is a nod at the original game, although in the game it's Mana who gives Shinji the pendant. I won't say anything else in case I spoil the game for you. Speaking of the game, I was putting the finishing touches on this chapter when I found out that Gainax is remaking Girlfriend of Steel for the PS2, and it should be on the shelves in Japan by the time you read this. Coincidence, perhaps?

Maybe it's because I'm probably my own worst critic, but I feel that this chapter's been all fluff and little plot. Oh, well. At least next chapter should have a lot more action in it. It had better, considering what's happening, right?

Prereading kudos go out this time to Ayanami-chan and everyone else at the Tales of Apartment 402. Thanks, guys:D

As usual, I appreciate all of you who took the time to read this fic, and especially those of you who have gently (or not so gently) urged me to keep at this. You know who you are.

Reviews and constructive comments are always welcome. If you don't feel like leaving a review here, drop me a line at akodo(underscore)tim1(at)yahoo(dot)com. Hopefully I'll be able to respond to them, too!

See you next chapter!

- - - - -

Dedication:

In memory of Azurewind (19xx-2005). I don't know if you ever read this fic or not, but this seems appropriate anyway. Apartment 402 won't be the same without you.


End file.
